At Em Oh Millennium World
by Youngbountygirl
Summary: Yugi is ready to retrieve his memories, though discovers this will cost him more than leaving Atem forever. Yugi finds himself playing an RPG game against Yami Ryou in a game called Millennium World that repeats the events of 3000 years ago. Yugi, with the help of his friends from the past and present, must win this game that seems impossible to win. Sequel to At-Em-Oh Rebirth
1. introductions

**The results are in! I will be doing a sequel after At-Em-Oh Millennium World called At-Em-Oh: Inherited Memories, based on the storyline of Yu-Gi-Oh Duelist of the Roses. I was watching a Let's Play YouTube video of Ka6Scope playing Yu-Gi-Oh Duelist of the Roses. I was afraid at first, because it seemed like one of those Yu-Gi-Oh games where you just duel people, like the ones my friends play (I'd rather that _I_ play it than watch someone else), though this one seemed different and had a storyline to it. I thought that storyline would fit perfectly after this story, because I think it'd be cool if Atem went back in time during the middle ages. Whom will he fight for? The Yorkists or the ****Lancastrians? If you played the game and have been paying attention, you'd know if Atem is gonna trust a cloaked _"who the heck is that guy"_ or Seto Kaiba. Review please!**

Atem Moto was a normal teenage boy until he solved the millennium puzzle and now shares a body with an annoying spirit and gained its dark powers. Along the way, he's gained friends: Hanaski, Tea, Seto, Marik, Ishizu, Mokuba, and many more. Atem participated in Duelist Kingdom to rescue his grandfather's soul, while protecting Kaiba Corp. He gained information about the millennium items and their dark powers. Since Pegasus' death, Yako and Gekko Tenma gained control of Industrial Illusions, including the wicked gods. Yako had been possessed by the wicked gods and devised a plan to bring back Pegasus using Atem, manager of Kaiba Corp, but was stopped by his friends, brother, and Atem's friends and family. Yugi played a Shadow Game against Yako and destroyed the wicked god cards, so now Kaiba Corporation and Industrial Illusions have made a contract for Yako and Gekko to sell products made from Kaiba Corporation. Atem also participated in Battle City, coe-hosting with Seto Kaiba, to win the three Egyptian God cards. He won and now holds them, which are the keys to unlocking Yugi's memories.

**Atem Moto: **For eight years, Atem had been trying to solve the millennium puzzle. He finished it and now has gained its dark powers and a spirit to share a body with. He now has a sense of understanding with the people around him. He's learn to show affection through words, action, and physical contact. He's also learned that the words he speaks can affect the people around him and now does not use as much negative language, unless he's really _really_ angry or thinks the person deserves it.

As a young boy, Atem shared a romantic childhood love with Serenity Wheeler, Joey's sister. Due to her parents' divorce, she had to leave him at age 10. They never saw each other again until six years later and are now currently dating. Atem will sometimes ask Serenity for curtain favors that include using her millennium necklace, like looking out for house breakers robbing the Game Shop. Atem and Serenity share a dream of being married, having kids, and growing up together until death.

After the divorce of Joey's parents, Joey and Atem were not only molested by Joey's drunkard dad, but the boys also hung out with the wrong crowd. They joined the Ritama gang at age 13 that sold drugs and alcohol, though weren't aware that this _gang_ raped women. When discovering this, they left the gang at age 15. Joey and Atem never joined that gang ever again, except by force.

Atem and Tea were long-time enemies until Yugi became involved in Atem's life. Now, Atem is close friends with her and Hanaski, though are closer with Yugi than Atem. Atem still thinks Tea can be a pain from time to time, but still hold a close friendship. Hanaski and Atem are just close friends.

Atem also met Seto Kaiba, who refused to make any friends due to it interfering with his business work. Though, Seto has learned that making friends has its advantages and makes him stronger instead of weaker. They were known to play games at school or home. They sometimes get on each others' nerves, but share a deep bond. Seto considers Atem one of his best employers, since he's the manager of Kaiba Corp. in Domino City, Japan.

Mokuba considers Atem like a _second older brother_, since he had taken care of the kid while Seto was comatose. Mokuba and Seto Kaiba consider Atem family.

Atem also happened to meet Ryan Bakura, who shares an ancient spirit and holds a millennium item, the millennium ring. Though, Ryou's situation is different, because inside him lies an evil spirit, who once turned Atem and his friends into avatar dolls in a Shadow Game of an RPG game called _Monster World_. He struck again in Battle City, controlling Ryou and threatening Atem to hurt Ryan until Ryou fought back. It is uncurtain when this evil spirit will strike again. Ryan is considered one of Atem's close friends and the only one, who can relate to living with a childish spirit inside him.

Atem participated in Duelist Kingdom to rescue his grandfather's soul and win the prize money for Serenity's operation, while protecting Kaiba Corp. when it was near bankruptcy. After defeating Pegasus, he revealed some information about the millennium items. Though, Atem seems to have found a distrust to the Tenma brothers, being that they are Pegasus' adopted sons and now run Industrial Illusions. Yako kidnapping, drugging him, and using his body to resurrect his step father only made Atem distrust the twins even more. Despite this, he does not hold them responsible for what happened to his grandfather and does believe that Yako and Gekko were not aware that Pegasus stole Atem's grandpa's soul in order to gain control of Kaiba Corporation and resurrect his wife.

Atem now has all four millennium items and three god cards: Obelisk, Slifer, and Ra. Each millennium item was given to an individual Atem trusts to prevent easy thievery. Atem keeps the puzzle, Ryan has the ring, Serenity has the necklace, and Seto has the rod. The three others are with Shadi, who has the scale and key, though the eye is currently missing after Pegasus' death. Atem suspects that Ryan might have it _unknowingly_. All seven millennium items and god cards are to be used to unlock Yugi's memories, though Atem is hesitant to do so due to returning Yugi to the Underworld and _never seeing him again._

Atem has a spiritual connection with Dark Magician Girl, whom he calls "Mana." It is possible that she might be the past life of Serenity Wheeler, due to the fact they look alike, but it is not curtain.

Currently, Atem is the manager of Kaiba Corp. in Domino City and has changed his outlooks. He now has a medium-sized cut and dyes his hair black to cover the gold bangs. He also has changed his attitude and look on life. Due to his high salaries, his family is now of a higher middle class and will sometimes ride a limo from time to time.

Atem works hard with hardly any breaks from Seto Kaiba or time to spend with his friends. He tries to _make_ time, but that doesn't always work and will be found sleeping during his off hours or days.

**Yugi: **A 3000 year old spirit who lives inside Atem, whom he loves to cuddle or share physical affection with and a brotherly bond. It is mentioned that Yugi has known Atem longer than he's known Yugi, due to spending eight years of seeing Atem without _touching_ or communicating with him. Yugi wishes to stay with Atem forever, but wants to rejoin his family in the Underworld and discover his past, since he has no memory of it.

Hanaski is Yugi's best, closest, and first friend he made, since being freed from the puzzle. They're often found holding hands while running down the hallways of Domino High. Tristan and Joey found this weird until they discovered Yugi's existence. Yugi came to know and befriend Tristan and Joey, while still being closer friends with Hanaski.

Yugi shares romantic feelings for Tea Garner, much to Atem's annoyance. Though, after a while, Atem has begun to understand Yugi _wanting_ Tea, sharing romantic feelings for Serenity. Both Yugi and Atem agree on taking turns sharing their _romantic times_ with their girlfriends, not caring about anybody rumoring about Atem having _two_ girlfriends. Tea and Serenity seem to be fine with this. It is not mentioned when or how Yugi and Tea started becoming a couple.

Yugi shares a spiritual connection Dark Magician, whom he calls "Mahad." He seems to be connected _somewhat_ to Yugi's past.

Yugi's discovered that the three Egyptian god cards and all seven millennium items will unlock his hidden memories. For now, he only knows he was once an Egyptian Pharaoh 3000 years ago, who sealed himself inside the millennium puzzle (including his name), and Seto is the reincarnate of his ancient cousin. There is still more for Yugi to learn about his ancient past, but he's reluctant to leave his brother and closest friend. The question is if Yugi will be prepared to leave Atem or not.

**Joey Wheeler:** Atem's childhood best and closest friend. At one point, Joey and Atem did _everything_ together, until Atem solved the puzzle. Joey noticed a change in Atem when he started acting childish and hanging around with Hanaski and Tea too much. He began questioning Atem, until he discovered the magic of the puzzle and Yugi's existence. Now, Joey and Yugi are close friends.

Joey _illegally_ joined Duelist Kingdom to help Atem win the prize money for his sister's operation. He was disqualified after dueling Bandit Keith. Despite this, Joey's strength increased in his dueling skills and participated in Battle City, thanks to Atem making sure his dueling level was _fair_. Joey dueled Melvin and collapsed during Battle City, due to third degree burns. He's strong and filled with more hope than ever before.

After a fight with Atem, Joey and his friends went to Kaiba Corp. to rescue their friend, who was kidnapped by Yako and used to bring back Pegasus from the dead. Joey was critical of Atem for _not spending time with his friends anymore_, due to his work. Though, after seeing Atem's scheduled meetings and a talk with Gekko, Joey's come to realize that Atem works harder than average kids his age. Joey now holds more respect for Atem than he's ever had before. He has also discovered that his negative language can give him a bad reputation.

Joey has a spiritual connection with Red-Eyes Black Dragon, whom he calls "Damon." It's said that Damon was Joey's ancient older brother from the past. Right before Battle City, Rare Hunters had stolen the Red-Eyes Black Dragon, only to be recovered by Atem. Joey promises Yugi for them to duel for the card and let him to keep the card until then. The duel for the Red-Eyes Black Dragon has already been done, but it is unknown who the winner is. It is assumed to be Yugi, but gives Joey his Red-Eyes Black Dragon anyways.

**Hanaski Tomoya:** A shy and timid boy, who loves Zombire and a big time fanatic of the comic. He used to bring Zombire comics everyday, but seems to have grown out of it. Now, he only brings his Duel Monsters deck to play Duel Monsters with his friends. It's possibly his new obsession, but that's very unlikely. It is not known what his duel level is, but it's assumed to be average or higher, seeing that he was able to beat a pro duelist. Hanaski carries a HERO deck, which involves using fusion monsters as his strategy.

At one point, Hanaski was bullied by Atem and Joey. Now, they're close friends, but his best friend is Yugi, a spirit who lives inside Atem. Hanaski has known about Yugi, since watching him play a Shadow Game with Trudge. Hanaski and Yugi do almost _everything_ together. Seeing that he never had friends before meeting Yugi, Hanaski considers him his _first best friend_. Tea was Hanaski's childhood friend, but only went as far as _close_ friends, not best friends.

Hanaski's father would come and visit, bringing Zombire comics and stuff. He, at one point, tried to make Hanaski feel stronger by paying thugs to pretend to be criminals and beaten up by him. Though, Hanaski's father came to realize that his son was already strong by having friends always with him. Hanaski still doesn't feel he's as strong or _stronger_ than Yugi or Atem, because he's always weak and afraid. Atem and Yugi think differently and believe that Hanaski is stronger and braver than the thinks, since he's willing to fight for his friends no matter how high the stakes are. Hanaski feels a little more confident, but still doesn't have as much faith in himself as he should.

**Tea Garner: **Her and Atem were long-time enemies, but now are close friends. Though, their relationship grew overtime, they still have their disagreements and still like to mess around with each other. Their relationship could be compared to in-laws, which is no surprise seeing that Tea is currently dating Yugi, who has a close brotherly relationship with Atem.

Tea's father thinks Tea is dating _Atem_, mistaking him for Yugi. Her friends tease her about the mix up, including Atem, who was once embarrassed by this, if Yugi started dating Tea. She continues to convince her father that she's not dating _Atem_, though he does not believe this, seeing that Yugi texts Tea on Atem's cell phone more often than anyone else. Tea decides to deal with the situation, seeing that Atem is willing to put up the trash talk rumors about having _two_ girlfriends.

Tea and Yugi are officially dating and have been for over a year. It is not mentioned when they came to grips with their feelings or when they started dating. Tea came to know Yugi through a shadow game against a guy on death row holding her at gunpoint. Through Yugi, Tea has become close friends with all of Yugi's other friends Joey, Tristan, Ryan, and Marik. Though, Tea and Seto still don't get along.

Serenity is currently Tea's closest girlfriend. Though, it isn't shown of them hanging out together or how they became close. It's probably estimated that this close relationship is due to having their boyfriends _share a body_ and being involved in sharing their man. Seeing that they have no trouble with taking turns, it can be said that Serenity and Tea are very VERY close.

**Serenity Wheeler: **Atem's childhood lover and current girlfriend. She dealt with bad eyesight most of her life and was hospitalized for it. Now that she's recovered, she's allowed to go anywhere with perfect eyesight. It is mentioned that Serenity has Panic Anxiety due to being molested by her father at a young age. She was given the millennium necklace to help her and now is brave enough to fight back if she ever needs to.

Serenity shows innocent features, much like Yugi, though she also has a brave nature to her. She's willing to protect her boyfriend with her life and dreams of being married to him one day and having kids. Atem shares this dream with Serenity. It seems that their love is very strong and connected. She's admitted that there was no other guy that she could possibly have loved as much as she's loved Atem and he feels the same. In other words, they have probably crushed or _dated_ other people, but neither of them have ever been their _perfect_ lover.

During Battle City, Atem told Serenity about Yugi. Serenity accepts Yugi and sees him as a little brother. She finds his hyperactivity very humorous and cute. There's not much said about Serenity's relationship with Yugi, besides that she loves him like a brother.

Serenity is the possessor of the millennium necklace. Atem will ask Serenity for help from time to time to keep watch and make sure no gangs or thugs try to break in his home. Serenity often helps Atem through _curtain situations_ at work whenever he needs a fortuneteller. Though, the millennium necklace is very limited, seeing that Serenity can't see the future when someone else holds one of the millennium items or holds the same amount of dark powers. This weakness could trigger Serenity's Panic Anxiety, but it seems that it's not as bad as before, so it's possible that Serenity's Panic Anxiety is getting better.

**Tristan Taylor: **A close friend of Atem's and Joey's since middle school. After Atem solved the puzzle, Tristan discovered his change of personality, but never bothered with it. Tristan was continually unaware of the dark magic Atem possessed until he was told while driving his friends from Kaiba Land to the hospital. It took some convincing, but he now believes and accepts Yugi as a close friend.

It's mentioned that Tristan was raised in a bad environment and has an older sister and her son named Jouji. Tristan occasionally will sometimes be babysitting Jouji. He had only appeared one time during Death T and has shown to not get along with Atem very well. He also knows about Yugi and the dark magic Atem possesses.

Tristan also had a slight crush on Serenity Wheeler, not knowing that she was dating Atem at the current moment. After discovering Serenity was dating Atem, Tristan stood out of the way and waited to see if the relationship would _work out_ or not. Then, Tristan saw Serenity talking to Atem about their future: being married someday and having kids. Tristan now no longer wishes to hook up with Serenity, because she can never be given the love she needs by Tristan. It can be assumed that when Tristan _crushed_ on Serenity, he probably was thinking more about getting the girl _laid_ instead of having a life with her. So far, there hasn't been any mention or sign that Tristan still is crushing on Serenity.

**Seto Kaiba: **The president of Kaiba Corp. He and Mokuba were adopted by Gozoburro Kaiba as orphans. He gained control of the company after his father committed suicide. He once believed that friendship interfered with his job, but realized that it made him stronger and not _weaker_. He's made Atem the manager of his company in Japan, being that he's the only one Seto trusts and one of his best employers.

Seto met Atem at his grandfather's game shop, where the Blue-Eyes White Dragon was held. After losing to Atem in a game of Duel Monsters, him and Seto developed a close relationship. They would be found at school playing a variety of games like Chess, UNO, Spades, Battleship, etc. Seto took this as weakness and tried to destroy his close relationship he had with Atem only to end up with a Penalty Game, which included Atem's and Mokuba's name on each hand and being comatose for half a year. Mokuba's name disappeared during Duelist Kingdom and Atem's name disappeared during Battle City. Seto is now willing to admit that he does deeply care about Atem and anyone who messes with him only makes Seto stronger.

Seto does not like Atem's other friends and finds both Hanaski and Yugi annoying, though Yugi shows some _interest_. Seto does hold respect for Joey as a duelist and respects Serenity as Atem's girlfriend. Despite this relationship, Seto does hint to care about Atem's friends. Seto is shown to be close to Uka like the mother he never had. This had been growing through time since Seto and Atem became friends, but this was not official until the incident when Atem was kidnapped and used to resurrect Pegasus by Yako Tenma.

Seto holds a spiritual connection with the Blue-Eyes White Dragon, whom he calls "Kisara." He's also discovered that he's the reincarnate of Yugi's ancient cousin 3000 years ago from a vision he and Atem saw during their duel at Battle City. He's currently the holder of the millennium rod, due to his lack of trust for himself and those around him.

Currently, Seto is living in America _temporarily_. He's also prepared to give Atem a week off for when he and Yugi are ready to retrieve his memories. Seto is willing to help Atem gain Yugi's memories, especially since he's protecting the rod for Atem.

**Mokuba Kaiba: **Vice President of Kaiba Corp. and younger brother of Seto Kaiba. When Seto and Atem began developing a close relationship, Mokuba took this as weakness and challenged Atem in a game of Capsule Monsters, but cheating. Atem won and now Mokuba is close to him and sees him as a _second older brother_.

During Duelist Kingdom, Atem took care of Mokuba while he was working on keeping Kaiba Corp. running and dealing with nightmares, with his brother comatose. Mokuba considers Atem close family and still sees him as an older brother despite Seto not being in his coma state.

Mokuba currently lives in America with his brother and running a Kaiba Corp. building in California.

**Duke Devilin: **The son of the store owner of the _Black Clown_ game shop. He also is the inventor of the game _Dungeon Dice Monsters_. The _Black Clown_ game shop is also a rival against Solomon's Game Shop, though Atem and Duke are still good friends despite that. They also made a deal to sell the _Dungeon Dice Monsters_ game at Solomon's game shop, so Solomon could have more costumers.

Despite having great relations with Atem, his father has it the _opposite_ with Solomon Moto. His father once played a Shadow Game against Solomon, meant to gamble the player's youth, for the millennium puzzle. Because he lost, Duke's father now looks older than his actual age and covers it with the mascot costume of his own game shop.

Duke was forced by his father to play against Atem for the millennium puzzle to be the new possessor. From the start, Duke never _wanted_ to be Atem's enemy or the millennium puzzle possessor, but to be Atem's friend. After Atem won, Duke's father tried to be the new possessor himself, but ended up getting a penalty game and set the whole game shop on fire. He's now in jail for attempted murder for several years. It can be assumed that Duke now runs the game shop due to his father's probation.

Duke was with Atem and his friends during Battle City. He's a supportive friend, but has a jerkish side to him. It makes a great compliment to his personality and the more reason for Atem wanting to be friends with him. He's also considered one of Atem's first friends who knew about Yugi before meeting Atem face to face.

Duke had helped rescue Atem, who was kidnapped and drugged by Yako to raise Pegasus from the dead. Though, he never did much, he did speak his mind and told the facts. Duke seems to be taken to be straight forward and is not afraid to speak his mind.

**Ryan Bakura: **The holder of the millennium ring, who holds an ancient spirit inside him, like Atem. He shares the same relationship with Ryou as Atem does with Yugi. It's revealed that because Ryan and Atem have alot in common with their relationship toward their spirit brothers, they reveal alot more to each other than with anyone else.

Ryan is the bad boy of the school. He was once a con artist working at a casino in England. When him and Ryou met, Ryou gave Ryan a reason to _show_ love. Though, this was before he realized Ryou carried an evil spirit inside him that would possess him without warning.

Ryan discovered the evil spirit when he bought the game_ Monster World_. The evil spirit took control of Ryou and turned his and Ryan's friends into avatar dolls. They continually moved from one place to another until they met Atem and his friends in Domino City and Yami Ryou challenged them to a Shadow Game. Yugi defeated Yami Ryou and Ryan kept the millennium ring off until Duelist Kingdom, when Yugi needed help to defeating Pegasus.

Yami Ryou took control of Ryou again during Battle City, seemingly working with Marik temporarily. Ryan still has the millennium ring to stay close to Ryou, but the evil spirit could strike at anytime.

Ryan is shown to have a curiousity over the millennium items. He knows now they hold a dark power, probably explaining why Ryou keeps becoming possessed by the evil spirit. Ryan also suspects it maybe the reason to Pegasus' sudden death.

**Ryou: **The spirit of the millennium ring, who lives inside Ryan. Ryou has no memories exceeding 10 years old, due to being possessed by some sort of _darkness_ from the millennium items. It's said that this same _darkness_ that possessed Ryou in the ancient past might be the same one who's possessing him now.

Just like Yugi, Ryou loves cuddling, feeling physical affection, and has a close brotherly bond with Ryan. Because of this, Ryan and Atem understand the bond they share with their spirit _brothers_ and can be more open to each other on this aspect.

After defeating the evil spirit, who sealed his friend's souls in avatar dolls, Ryan kept the ring off, preventing Ryou from spending any time with his other friends. He envied Yugi, because he could spend time with his friends whenever he wanted. Though, Ryan wears the ring again, so Ryou now can spend time with his friends, but with a heavy risk.

Yami Ryou had possessed Ryou during Battle City, seemingly siding with Marik temporarily. Atem had played a Shadow Game against Yami Ryou and defeated him. Ryan still has the millennium ring, so Yami Ryou can still possess Ryou again, though nobody knows why he sided with Marik to begin with.

It is suspected that Yami Ryou murdered Pegasus and stole the millennium eye, though Ryou is unaware of this. Ryou is hoping that Yugi can help defeat the darkness possessing him when he strikes again.

**Marik Ishtar:** Former holder of the millennium rod and a tombkeeper, bound to protect the millennium items, or two of them. He was introduced when he entered Battle City to avenge his father's death, thought to be murdered by Yugi. He's now realized that his father's death was caused by his second personality he created out of his grief, anger, and extreme abuse.

When entering Battle City, Marik came under the name _Namu_. He befriended Atem and controlled him with the millennium rod, unaware that he was the possessor of the millennium puzzle. When Marik discovered Atem was the possessor of the puzzle, he took this as an advantage to trap Yugi's and Atem's friends and make Yugi suffer for murdering his father.

Marik's second personality Melvin took over when Odion was put in a coma. Marik realized that _Melvin_ was the true cause of his father's death and possessed Atem to play a Shadow Game against Melvin. Ryou, of course, took Atem's place to duel for Marik. Unfortunately, Marik lost and this sent Ryou and Ryan to the Shadow Realm, only for Marik to be trapped inside Atem's body for the time being. By fighting back during Melvin's duel with Yugi, Marik was finally able to gain control over his body again and have Melvin be the one _sent to the Shadow Realm_.

Marik and Atem are still friends to this day and Marik now realizes that Yugi is a good person. He also is taking medication for his disorder.

**Ishizu Ishtar:** Marik's older sister. Ishizu knows alot about Ancient Egyptian history due to being a tombkeeper and the former possessor of the millennium necklace. She gave Seto and Atem information about the Rare Hunters before Battle City and informed Yugi about his ancient past. She was never seen again until the finals of Battle City when she dueled against Seto.

Ishizu participated in Battle City to save her brother from his second personality Melvin. She only watched the duels after losing to Seto Kaiba. It's told that Ishizu was once like Serenity and developed a similar _disorder_ due to abuse by her father or possibly intermarriages that run in the family. Seeing that Serenity had no future after the final eight, Ishizu gave her the millennium necklace to help Serenity with her Panic Anxiety. Because of the necklace, Serenity knows what will happen in the future before it happens, curing the Panic Anxiety.

Though Ishizu protects Yugi's tomb and memories, she also does not believe in hiding underground and decides for her and Marik to live in the real world. She believes that she can help Marik with his disorder and putting him on medication. The last that was seen of Ishizu and Marik was them leaving back for Egypt, leaving the two millennium items to Atem.

**Yako Tenma: **Coe President of Industrial Illusions after the death of Maxamillion Pegasus. After his death, Yako and Gekko went through a depression. Though, they are unaware that the evil spirit inside Ryan murdered Pegasus. Yako does not know _who_ murdered his adopted father.

While cleaning up Pegasus' old bedroom, Yako opened his father's safe and took a hold of the wicked gods, who possessed him. Yako began conjuring up a plan to use Atem's body to resurrect Maxamillion Pegasus. After the Shadow Game against Yugi, Yako is no longer possessed by the wicked gods cards and they are now destroyed.

Yako was unaware of Pegasus' actions of capturing Atem's grandpa's soul in order to gain control of Kaiba Corp. to resurrect his wife. Despite this, Yako shares the same feelings of _wanting_ Pegasus back, but not willing to risk the life of someone else unless possessed to do so.

Yako and his brother have made a contract with Kaiba Corp. to sell their products.

**Gekko Tenma: **Identical twin of Yako Tenma and coe President of Industrial Illusions. After Pegasus' death, Gekko also went through a depression, but believed that Pegasus would want him and Yako to live their lives without him. Gekko is not willing to risk someone else's life and if someone does, he will not hesitate to stop him or her.

Yako had removed Gekko from his job when trying to stop him from using Atem's body to resurrect Pegasus. Desperate he went to Atem's friends to help him stop Yako from making the biggest mistake of his life that could lead to imprisonment. They were willing to help and agreed to not let the police know that _Yako_ was the main cause of Atem's capture and almost _murder_.

Gekko is blunt, but also has a sympathetic side to him. He always stays by Yako's side and agrees with almost everything Yako says, unless he's doing something that threatens someone else's life or is not acting like himself. Because of this, Gekko is very supportive of his brother and closer to him more than anyone else.

Gekko seems to have respect for Atem, despite them having some tension, due to distrust. After discovering what Pegasus did in Duelist Kingdom, he is hoping that by helping Kaiba Corp. sell their products, he could mend that tension and makeup for Pegasus' and Yako's mistakes.

Gekko is unaware that Yami Ryou _or Ryan_ was the true murderer of Maxamillion Pegasus.

**Solomon Moto: **Atem's current guardian and grandfather. Solomon is the founder of the millennium puzzle, buried inside the tomb of the Nameless Pharaoh. His grandson solved the puzzle and was granted dark powers and a spirit, who now rests inside him. Solomon believes Atem was destined to solved the puzzle and tries to help him any way he can, even while his soul was trapped inside Atem's iPhone during Duelist Kingdom.

Though, it's unclear if Solomon knows about Yugi's history or not. It's also never mentioned if he was ever told about Battle City and the Shadow Games that were played.

**Uka Moto: **Atem's current guardian and mother. For a time, she was unaware of Yugi's existence until Atem played a Shadow Game against Pegasus on web cam. Uka accepts Yugi and loves him like her own son, though still continually worries for Atem and carries alot of weight and grief on her shoulders.

Ever since Atem joined a gang that sold drugs and alcohol at age 13, Uka fears of losing her son. She feels pity that Atem works harder than the average teen at his age. Some of the times, Uka wishes she could've kept her son from suffering as much as he did. Though, Uka is proud of Atem for taking responsibility for his own actions and acting more grown up.

It's shown that Uka loves Seto like her own son. This is probably due to the visitations before Death T. Seto will drop by for a visit, whenever he comes to Domino City, to play a game with Atem. Uka admires and respects Seto as one of Atem's good and loyal friends.

**Yami Ryou: **An evil spirit who takes over Ryou's mind from time to time. He is said to _come from the darkness of the millennium items_, but this is not specific. He took control of Ryou at ten years old, which is why he doesn't remember any of his childhood over ten.

Yami Ryou appeared when Ryan bought the game _Monster World_ and played a Shadow Game against Ryan's and Ryou's friends to seal their souls in avatar dolls. This kept going until Yami Ryou played against Yugi and his friends and lost. Yami Ryou was weakened for the time being, but struck again when he murdered Pegasus. It's also hinted that he took the millennium eye as well.

The evil spirit struck another time when Ryan entered Battle City and made a deal with Marik. He joined Marik to gain some information about the inscriptions on his back. It is unknown what Yami Ryou's true intentions were, but it's curtain that he was not planning on _winning_ against Atem during Battle City.

Yami Ryou was never seen from again after Battle City, but is bound to strike at anytime.

**Priest Seto: **Yugi's ancient cousin from 3000 years ago. According to the vision Atem, Yugi, and Seto were given during Battle City, Priest Seto was possessed by some sort of _evil_ that's destroying Egypt. There is not much said about Priest Seto other than being the past life of Seto Kaiba and possibly having a close and loyal relationship with Yugi. It's also mentioned that Priest Seth was Pharaoh after Yugi's death.

**Damon: **The human form of Red-Eyes Black Dragon. It's said that he's the older brother of Joey's past life. Because Joey is so much like _Joseph_, Damon's little brother, Damon treats Joey like his little brother and usually gives advice or support. It's also said that he was the former possessor of the millennium rod and priest under Pharaoh Seth.

**Kisara: **The human form of Blue-Eyes White Dragon. There is not much to say about her, except that she's Seto Kaiba's soul card.

**Mana: **Is Dark Magician Girl and Atem's soul card. She looks like a spitting image of Serenity, probably hinting that she is possibly her past life. It's also hinted that she's connected to Yugi's ancient past.

**Mahad: **Is Dark Magician and Yugi's soul card. Mahad is one of Yugi's most loyal monsters and protector. It's hinted that he's connected to Yugi's past, but it's uncertain how.

**Shadi: **The last Shadi was seen was challenging Yugi to a Shadow Game a year ago when trying to judge Professor Hawkins for trespassing to the Valley of the Kings. Yugi stopped Shadi due to Professor Hawkins not knowing about the laws of the dead and nobody believing in Ancient Egyptian mythology around the modern times.

Shadi tested Yugi in a Shadow Game and had lost. He disappeared, never to be seen again. He possesses the millennium key and millennium scale. His picture was also seen in Pegasus' mansion.


	2. Valley of the Kings

**Now, we can start the story. Why are Yako and Gekko in the descriptions? Well, they're kinda involved in this story, compared to the original Millennium World. There's a reason too, so just read and enjoy. Review please!**

The sun was rising in the deserts of Egypt. Three camels came walking across the sand, each with a man riding it. One man wore a black tuxedo and bow tie, some nice black pants, and a black hat on his head as if he was going to a party. His eyes were hidden in the shadows of his hat, only to show some black hair, a black beard, and golden bangs.

The men beside this man seemed to be Egyptian locals with white robs and turbans. Each stood beside the man in the black suit with serious glares as if they were on some sort of _mission_. The man in the black suit showed a smirk made of confidence.

"This is it sir, the Valley of the Kings," the man on the left said.

"The tomb you seek is in this area. Over 60 tombs have been discovered, most of them ransacked. Though, this _particular_ tomb, nobody has ever gone in there and lived to tell the tale. Not the archeologists, grave robbers, _nobody_. The last who had entered was a British Archeology team. One man came out and at his last breath he said, 'Shadow Games,'" the man on the right explained.

The man with the black suit rubbed his chin, then smiled even deeper. A dark chuckle seem to come from this man as he revealed his eyes as dark violet and seemed to be around his mid 30's.

"Sounds like fun," the man in the black suit responded.

"No sane man would _ever_ think to go in there to win a dangerous game. You go and we'll follow you for the treasure. After all, the one who wins the game gains the treasure," the man on the left said.

"I understand that," the man in the middle said while lighting up his cigarette. "I'm not interested in this _treasure_. Gambling is my thing, as you know. I like a good challenge, especially ones involving lives at stake."

The men stared at the man with suspicion and question. The man on the right advised, "we should wait until night, where grave robbing is usually done, Solomon."

"Very well. Let us camp here," Solomon agreed.

Solomon had always been a huge gamer and would often be found in casinos gambling and playing games for the fun of it. The money never mattered to him. The only thing that mattered was the fun of the game. Solomon never cared for the women, money, beer, or even bets placed on him. He already had a wife, who was taking care of his only child Ko.

Solomon spend his time smoking and watching the desert sand fly in the wind. The sun was slowly setting and it was almost time to enter inside the tomb of the Nameless Pharaoh. Solomon had heard rumors about a Shadow Game played for whoever enters. He found this _interesting_, despite his wife's disagreement and thinking Solomon_ will get himself killed._

The sun finally set and darkness covered the land. The two men in turbans got up at the same time that Solomon did. A smirk appeared across his face as he took his cigarette and blew the smoke from his mouth. It was time to set foot inside the tomb of the Nameless Pharaoh, where rumor had it that _nobody_ came out of there alive.

"For a tomb robber, you dress very _strangely_. A tuxedo?" The man on the right asked.

"Games are my life, as you know. I've played them all in casinos and I _always_ treat my opponents with respect," Solomon explained as he pulled up his hat. "In fact, if I lose this game, I will trade in my suit for a pair of overalls and collect the years instead of chips."

"This game could cost you _more_ than the clothes on your back. Just be sure you don't join in with the mummies," the man on the left warned with a devious smirk across his lips.

The three men walked to a hidden cliff Northwestern from the camp. Solomon stared at the entrance with two serious looking eyes. He knew the game awaited inside the tomb and he was willing to go inside and challenge the gods to this game. Solomon was ready to play this _deadly game_.

"You can go first, Solomon," the man on the right offered. Solomon nodded, then walked inside the tunnel of the tomb. They came to a room where there stood a wall warning any visitor who entered the tomb. Solomon knew his Ancient Egyptian all too well to not know what it said.

_"Beyond this point enters the great Pharaoh. Beware you who disturbs him, the gods shall punish you, your body will rot, and your soul shall be cursed to eternal darkness,"_ Solomon read on the wall. He took out his cigarette and show a smile. "Guess this must be his welcoming doormat."

"You can read hieroglyphs?" the man on the left asked with furrowed eyebrows.

"I've taken a few classes in college," Solomon replied, then entered through the entrance. He came to a room that showed a floor maze and a pit down below the maze walkthrough, filled with dead corpse. The men jumped while Solomon gasped. "Must be the bodies of the previous thieves who lost."

_"W-We can turn back now,"_ the man on the right whispered the man on the left.

_"No way! We came too far to turn back now. Listen, we'll let this guy solve the puzzles like Indiana Jones and we can get the treasure. If the worst happens, we'll use this,"_ the man on the left whispered, showing a pistol on his back belt.

_"Okay."_

The man on the right accidentally pressed a curtain button on the floor. The two gasped, looked behind them, and the way out was closed and spikes appeared on the wall, closing in on them. They both began running across the walkway of the maze to escape their death.

"Hurry! It's closing in on us!" The man on the left cried aloud.

Solomon ran ahead and noticed statues of Egyptian men with swords, swinging them around. He began ducking and moving left and right to avoid the attacks. Solomon had to think of a way to avoid the statues. He moved his right foot to dodge one attack, then the statue suddenly stopped. A smirk appeared on his lips.

"Keep your left leg in front of you as you move! This will avoid the statues from attacking you!" Solomon told the men.

"But we can't move like _that_!" the man on the left cried aloud.

_"Just do it!"_

The two men did as Solomon said. He knew his Ancient Egyptian history. People used to look at Pharaohs as gods. Entering the Pharaoh's tomb was a place of the gods and everyone must show their humility. Solomon knew this and knew _following the rules_ was the only way to survive this tomb. He finally entered to the other side, then heard a choking cry.

Solomon gasped and turned around. One of the men was stabbed by one of the statues by two swords._ He put his right leg forward._ The other man turned around and gasped, crying out, _"MUSHARA!"_ He glared and walked to the other side with his left foot forward. He pointed his gun at Solomon with straight demand. "It's _your_ fault my brother is dead!"

"Suck it up! That's the rules of the Shadow Game and your brother just broke the rules," Solomon asked, not being fazed by the fact a gun was pointed to his head. His eyes were furrowed and showed a straight line on his lips.

"JUST KEEP MOVING!" The man shouted as Solomon turned around and entered into the next room with his hands in his pockets.

Solomon saw more hieroglyphs on the wall of the next room. Solomon put his torch next to the wall and read, _"the spirits of the stone slabs shall judge you. The cowardly shall be eaten by demons and the brave shall be shown the way."_ He looked ahead and saw a pit with a bridge of stoned slabs with monsters on them. On the other side was a small gold box with hieroglyphs. "Looks like your treasure is over there."

"GO! Show me where it's safe to step!"

"As long as you don't let your guard down!" Solomon warned as he walked across the stone-slabbed bridge. He kept walking, a smile across his face, knowing he was about to win the Shadow Game. When he was half across the bridge, he heard a gunshot. Pain was felt on his shoulder and his body fell to the pit, grabbing the edge of the bridge on time. Solomon glared at the man who shot him, who held a smirk across his face.

_"See ya in hell!"_ the man with the turban said as he began walking across the bridge. Suddenly, he gasped, noticing the slab, where Solomon was near, began glowing. The man with the turban felt sweat across his face as the monster appeared huge with brown skin, sharp teeth and claws, and hungry looking eyes. "WHAT'S GOING ON?" The man was taken by the monster and gobbled up in one swallow.

_"No..."_ Solomon whispered with fear in his heart. He just lost the game and now was going to die.

Suddenly, he felt _someone_ grab his arm and help pull his body out of the pit. He put his hand across his gunshot wound, trying to stop the bleeding, then saw a transcend hand on his own. Solomon slightly gasped, finding the owner of this _hand_. It was a small teenage boy with two huge round violet eyes. This boy wore a white man's skirt with a golden belt and jewelry. A crown with the Eye of Horus was upon the boy's head, along with the Pharaoh headdress.

_"Are you okay, Shimon? You're hurt,"_ the boy asked in a worried voice with such innocent eyes and a slightly gaped mouth.

_"Are you the Pharaoh?"_ Solomon asked in a whisper as the Pharaoh smiled childishly before he disappeared. Solomon would never forget those eyes and promised to protect the puzzle with his life.

* * *

About 30 years have passed since Solomon retrieved the millennium puzzle. His family was excited that he had found the ancient artifact that had been lost for 3000 years. Ko seemed interested and played with it once in a while. He also showed it to his girlfriend Uka to impress her and _she_ tried solving it. Little did they know, there was a _spirit_ who watched them as they slowly fell in love.

Solomon watched his son grow up, marry, and move him and his wife to a new home in Tokyo. Solomon would visit every once in a while, but the travel cost was expensive and only visited his son and his family one time during a family reunion. Though, this happy little family would not last forever. Tragedy was waiting at their doorstep.

Solomon opened the puzzle box and smiled at the glittering puzzle pieces of the millennium puzzle. By this time, his black hair was beginning to turn gray. He heard footsteps from an older lady with gray-red hair, blue eyes, and a soft smile across her face. She walked to the counter where Solomon was standing at.

"You still want to solve that puzzle so badly?" The woman asked.

"You know me and games Hana," Solomon smirked as he watched his wife laugh.

"I still remember how happy you were when you came home with that puzzle. Your smile always brings me joy, Dear!"

"It brings me more joy to finally open my new Game Shop! We can get some money to see my Ko and Atem. He's told me my grandson is turning into me!"

_"I wonder why."_

Suddenly, there was a loud knock on the door. Solomon put the puzzle down and answered the door and there stood Uka with hot red eyes. Solomon stood there in shock, also noticing a little boy behind Uka.

_"Dad, I'm sorry I didn't call, but there was an accident, my phone was damage, and... OH MY GOD!"_ Uka cried, covering her face with bitter tears.

"What's wrong?" Hana asked. "Where's Ko?"

_"He's... d-d-dead,"_ Uka wept as Hana took the poor woman in her arms. _"I don't have anywhere to go!"_

"You can stay here anytime you want, Dear."

_"Thank you. I'm not sure what I'm gonna do without Ko!"_

Solomon looked at the little boy, whom he hadn't seen in almost a year. This little toddler had grown and showed to have black spiky hair with golden locks like himself. This little boy had eyes and facial features that looked almost like the Pharaoh he saw in the tomb of the Nameless Pharaoh, except this one looked like all those _innocents_ were shattered into little tiny pieces.

_"Hey there, it's Grandpa. Do you remember me?"_ Solomon asked in a coo voice to the little toddler. Though, Atem probably did not remember Solomon, since it had been a whole year and he was barely three years old.

"I wan' Daddy!" Atem shouted in an angry tone.

"I'm sorry. Daddy's not coming back," Solomon said, feeling very guilty for putting this inside this little boy's mind.

"I WAN' DADDY!" Atem cried aloud, then began crying and bawling with hot tears pouring out of his eyes. Solomon picked up the little boy and patted his back. _"Those mean people took Daddy away!"_

"I know. I know._ Shhhhhhhh,_" Solomon said in a quiet voice. He felt a deep hurt, knowing his son was gone from his life, but had to stay strong for this little one. He saw the puzzle on the counter. "Here, I got something for you!" Solomon walked over to the counter and gave Atem the puzzle box. He looked at it with puzzlement, tears still rolling down his cheeks. "Daddy used to play with this. This puzzle creates something. Nobody has ever solved it before. Maybe you can solve it."

_"Ogay,"_ Atem said as he was put down and took the puzzle box with him to the attic. He kept trying to connect the pieces together. A smile came across his face. "May'e if I solve dis, I can ha' one w'j." He closed his eyes, holding two of the pieces. "I w'j Daddy were 'ere." Little did Atem know, there was a curtain _spirit_ watching him from behind, who was smiling while watching each piece being placed together.


	3. Thief and Murderer

**Next chapter! I decided to add a little extra for the flashback for kicks. I mean who wouldn't want to see a tiny Atem? He's so cute! ^^ Review please!**

"Ever since then, you've been wanting to solve that puzzle and spend all your hours on... _Atem are you paying attention?_" Solomon asked. It was passed midnight and he was telling Atem one of his favorite stories about how he got the puzzle by his grandson's bedside. Yugi smiled brightly, laying his head on something _invisible_.

"Brother already nodded off I'm afraid," Yugi said.

Solomon sighed in relief, then said, "good, I was afraid that boy would _never_ get to sleep. It's 2:30 in the morning."

"Thanks for getting Brother to sleep."

"One thing I know about my grandson is that he always goes to sleep when I tell him my historical adventures... though I hate how it effects his grades."

Yugi chuckled, then yawned aloud, before turning on his front side, wrapping his arms around Atem's waist and resting his head on Atem's chest. Solomon chuckled before tucking Yugi into bed and kissing the side of his head.

"You best get to sleep too. You have a big day tomorrow, as you know," Solomon said.

"I know. Thanks again," Yugi thanked as Solomon showed a cheery smile before carefully closing the door.

Yugi sighed, then slowly closed his eyes as he found himself being warped inside his mind room that was just a huge bright maze. He walked through the door and entered the door to his brother's mind room. Yugi found himself sitting on a huge tree with Atem, both boys leaning against each other. Yugi smiled, then felt Atem's embrace, the boys were holding each other close. Yugi wanted to hold his brother as long as he could before he'd retrieve his memories and leave Atem forever.

Yugi slightly moaned as he nuzzled his face on the side of Atem's neck. This was probably going to be their last day of _ever_ being together and holding each other like this. Yugi never wanted this moment to end.

"You know, it was about time you went to sleep," Yugi smirked as Atem folded his arms on his brother's chest and rested his chin on them.

"_Thanks for putting me through torture._ I'm surprised this isn't a nightmare," Atem replied. He was used to knowing if a dream was a dream or not without waking up. "I'm also excited you're getting your memories back. I know you've been wanting this for a long time."

"I know!" Yugi said with a childish smile, then began playing with Atem's golden locks. Atem's and Yugi's hair looked their natural color when they were inside their dreams or soul rooms. _"I'm going to miss you, Brother."_

_"I'm going to miss you too,"_ Atem admitted quietly as he rubbed his fingers on the bottom of Yugi's golden lock. He wanted to use this time to look back at all the memories and good times he had with Yugi, but there were so many. Atem let out a sigh while slowly laying his head on Yugi's chest, using his folded arms as a pillow.

"Atem, I know who I am. I am the soul of an Ancient Egyptian Pharaoh, who sealed his soul into the puzzle. I met you and we became really close brothers. I met Hanaski, and Tea, and Joey, and Tristan, and Seto... new memories. I'll always cherish them, especially the times we were together. Like the first day we met."

_"Don't remind me,"_ Atem sighed while rolling his eyes.

"I saw you inside your soul room and I held you so tight, because I was so excited that we could finally _touch_!"

"And you were torture, because you kept wanting to hug me like a stuffed teddy bear and I _actually_ couldn't sleep without it!"

Yugi grinned childishly as Atem snorted out a chuckle, then said, "at least you calmed down a bit later on... even though it took a whole year."

"We still snuggle."

"Not as much and not so much I have to wrestle off a guy my age acting like he's three."

"You liked it."

"Shut up!" Atem said as Yugi rolled his eyes, playing with his brother's hair. "You know, it's just like when I put the pieces of the puzzle together. It's time that you put the pieces of _your memory_ together."

"Right!"

"As long as you need me, I'll always be with you."

"Thanks Brother... I love you."

"I love you too," Atem said, then embraced Yugi tightly once more. Just then...

CRASH!

* * *

Atem gasped and woke up, only to spot some thief grabbing the three Egyptian god cards inside the puzzle box. Atem glared intensely thinking, _'I knew I should've asked Serena for a night check!'_

"HEY! Give those back!" Atem shouted as the thief snatched his hand from the broken window and ran across the roof.

Atem was following the thief in his boxers, since that was the only thing he wore to bed. He didn't care, he wanted those god cards back or Yugi would _never_ gain back his memories. He jumped across rooftops, following the running thief. Then, Atem jumped off from one of the roofs to the fire escape, then slid down the pole next to it, and tackled the thief to the ground. He was able to snatch the puzzle box with the Egyptian god cards as the thief tried to throw a punch, hitting Atem's left cheek. Atem didn't flinch. He took both his opponent's wrists, and then crossed them before holding them with his left arm and punching the thief across the jaw.

Atem quickly got on his feet as he began running down the sidewalk back to his house. He looked behind him and noticed the thief chasing him before he got out his pistol he usually hid under his pillow. It was _always_ with him just in case thieves tried to break in. The thief stopped.

"Run while you can," Atem warned as the thief ran from him and he held the pistol down. He checked the gun in his hand and glared at it._ "You're lucky I forgot to unlock the safety lock."_ He began walking down the sidewalk on his way home. Just then, he noticed an older man walking by with a cigarette in his mouth and a creepy looking smile.

"Hey kid, what cha doin' walking around these parts?" The man asked.

"Why are you talking to me?" Atem snapped while walking passed him before the man turned to attack him. Though, Atem dodged it and ripped the coat from the man before making him fall to his feet in an instant. "Thanks for the coat. Attack me again and I'll put a bullet right up your ass." The man could see Atem wasn't joking, seeing that he had the gun in his hand and showed the safety was off this time. _"No wonder Mom is single."_

* * *

On the other side of the world, stood a mansion somewhere in Miami. The mansion had stained glass windows almost everywhere on the outside of the house, white-painted house, a marble floor with mixed bright colors, a few fancy carpets, a huge black leather couch, two white comfy chairs, a TV screen on the wall with buttons beside it, a glass coffee table, two stereos on both sides of the TV screen, a bookshelf on the right with who knows how many books, and several random pictures, one being of Pegasus with his arms around two twin boys, who showed perky faces of happiness and joy.

One of the twins was sitting on one of the comfy chairs reading a book called Mysteries of Sherlock Holmes. The mansion was quiet and seemed like a good time to read anything interesting. The twin showed furrowed eyebrows, getting deep into the story he was reading about this very intelligent detective solving crimes. He suddenly heard the doorbell ring.

The twin sighed as he placed the book down, saving his spot, and opened the door. He rose two eyebrows when he saw a man with a small brown box in his hand with a curtain address from Japan and an anonymous name. He never remembered ordering anything, neither him or his twin.

"Delivery sir?" The man asked.

"Who is it from?" Yako asked.

"Japan sir. That's all I can tell ya."

"Thank you."

Yako signed his signature, then closed the door as he heard his brother walk downstairs with a white robe around himself. He was very tired and seemed to have been woken up from his beauty sleep.

"Who was _that_?" Gekko asked.

"A mailman dropping off a delivery for us, but from someone _anonymous_," Yako replied.

"Well, that's just odd!"

"_No duh!_ I wonder what this is?"

"Maybe it's a bomb from some group of terrorists," Gekko teased as Yako shot his brother a glare.

"You watch the news _way_ too much. Besides, that wouldn't make any sense, because terrorists end up killing themselves when setting off a bomb."

Yako opened the brown box and looked inside, hoping it wasn't poison or anything. Once he opened it, he let out a small gasped and widened eyes. _It was the millennium eye and a note under it!_ Yako took the note and opened it. Gekko looked over his brother's shoulder to read what the paper said.

_"Tenma's, I've invited you to join a little game of mine with Yugi. Think of the eye as an _invitation_. I'm sure your father would be very proud of you both. It's just too bad his life had to go to waste. My two hosts and I will be waiting for you... Ryan Bakura..."_

"It was Ryan? He's the murderer?" Gekko asked with an angry tone. He glared his eyes away from the note. _"Son of a bitch."_

"He said_ 'host,'_ that means it's not the real Ryan and he's possessed. He's probably a millennium item wielder like Atem and Pegasus."

"What are you going to do?"

"You mean _we_. We're going to play this game and make that son of a bitch pay!"

"But what about Yugi's memories? We can't just get ourselves involved in something out of our control!"

"I'm not going to turn down a challenge! _You_ can back down, but I'm not."

"I didn't say I would back down."

"Then welcome aboard," Yako smirked as Gekko nodded, then took the millennium eye from the small box.

"As always," Gekko smirked with folded arms.

Yako walked to his phone and dialed a curtain number while Gekko walked upstairs to dress into more decent clothes. Yako let out a huge sigh before hearing someone pick up from the other line.

"I need you to send me a private jet. We're going to Japan."


	4. World of Memory

**Next chapter! Yes, I am involving the Tenma brothers, because I think they deserve to be given some credit for defeating the one that killed their father. I mean I know revenge isn't the answer and bla bla bla, but this is Yugioh, this is a fan fiction, and I don't care. Review please!**

The next day at school during Study Hall, Atem was studying for his exams, which were to be taken in a month. He had his laptop on his desk and writing answers on his study sheet. While using the school internet to find his answers, Atem kept asking himself why his job at work couldn't be _this easy_ to do projects. On the positive side, he had the whole week off work today and didn't have to worry about projects in the meantime. This was somewhat of a relief to Atem.

Joey was talking to Tristan about something that happened this morning. They laughed once in a while, then Joey turned to Hanaski, who was studying for the exams, like Atem. He looked up with listening ears.

"Hey Hanaski, you look tired. Did you sleep at all last night?" Joey asked.

"How can I sleep? Yugi might be leaving today. I know this is when he'll be getting back his memories. I mean... it's not that I'm _not_ happy for him, but... I'm gonna miss him," Hanaski replied, resting his cheek on his hand.

"That's right. It's today isn't it?" Joey realized, seemingly having a hint of sadness. Then, he looked behind him, then put his face closer to Hanaski to ask him something in a whisper._ "By the way, when will you be sending me back that DVD?"_

"What DVD?"

_"You know. The one I sent you, because my DVD player was broken. The one with _the thing_."_

"Th-_That one?_ I thought I gave it back to you after I found out it had po-" Hanaski glared as Joey covered his mouth, only letting out muffles.

_"Shush you big mouth!"_

"Joey, you could've borrowed my laptop. You know I don't mind you watching anything as long as you don't download them or post them on my Facebook or MySpace," Atem said with furrowed eyebrows.

"What are you boys talking about?" Tea asked before Serenity whispered something in her ear. Tea's eyes widened, then cringed and glared at Joey disgustedly._ "GROSS!"_

"Not as gross as the stuff Ryan looks up on the internet," Atem smirked as Ryan, who was sitting next to him on the left, took out a text book and tried to whack him across the head with it, but missed. Atem chuckled in response.

"Ignore him!" Ryan said.

"Yes, ignore _him_," Atem teased as Ryan got up and closed his friend's laptop and showed a victorious smirk on his face.

"Serves you right."

"Hey Atem, did you bring the Egyptian God cards with you?" Tristan asked, who was sitting in front of Tea, who sat by Atem on the right.

"I did," Atem replied, reaching into this book bag and showed them the three Egyptian God cards.

"So... how is the whole _'Yugi getting his memories back'_ thing supposed to work?" Tristan asked.

"Yugi said the instructions are written on the stone slab at the museum. Ryan said his father would allow us to go to the basement, since that's where the stone slab is located," Atem explained.

"_Uh-huh._ Did he read it?"

"He did, but he doesn't remember what it _exactly_ says. I mean the last he saw that thing was what? Half a year ago and during most of that time I was too busy taking care of thugs robbing my house. I had one breaking into my room last night!"

"No wonder you look dead beat."

"Not to mention my exams, which are next week!"

"OH SHIT! I FORGOT TO STUDY!" Tristan cried out, looking like his head was about to burst.

"You always wait until the last minute Tristan, that's why you were held back last year," Joey smirked.

_"Shut it you big mouth!"_ Tristan seethed through his teeth while Atem rolled his eyes.

"Oh quit it, Tristan. We were _all_ held back. Heck, Joey and I were held back three times," Atem said as if it was no big deal.

"_Three times?_ But you're 17 in 11th grade!" Tristan cried out.

"Your point?"

"Eh... never mind."

"You were held back _three times_?" Hanaski asked in shock. "How old were you when you started kindergarten?"

"Four, but skipped a grade when I was five. After that, the drugs kicked in and Joey and I were held back three times," Atem explained.

"But that would mean Joey's-"

"19 years old," Joey grinned.

_"Son of a bitch,"_ Ryan smirked. "And here I thought you were just in love with an older woman in Duelist Kingdom."

"Speaking of which, how's Mai doing?" Atem asked.

"Doing good! Says she's thinking about going back to college next year," Joey replied.

"Good for her!" Serenity said with a huge smile.

Atem noticed Tea seemed to have _things_ on her mind. She was resting her chin on her hand while staring at her desk. Atem bit his lips, making a thin line on his mouth, then tapped on Tea's shoulder. Tea blinked, then eyed Atem's direction.

"If Yugi leaves and gets his memories back... will he still remember us?" Tea asked as Atem furrowed his eyebrows, staring at the ground, to think about what answer to give. Suddenly, he changed to Yugi, who gave a huge smile that was so sweet and childish.

"Do you _honestly_ believe I would forget about my friends, especially _you_ Tea?" Yugi asked, stretching his hand to touch Tea's cheek.

"I-I suppose you're right," Tea believed, then leaned forward and kissed Yugi passionately on the lips. Then, after the kiss, Yugi changed back to Atem and he glared right at a group of three staring at him and Tea.

"_What?_ Is there a law that says I can't have _two_ girlfriends?" Atem glared as the students returned to what they were previously doing. "Seriously, it's been five months, you'd think people would be used to this by now."

"At least this isn't gonna last for long," Joey smirked as Atem sighed, then opened up his laptop.

"I have to study anyhow. I still have two pages front and back of this packet to go," Atem said. He didn't want to show how sad he was about Yugi leaving and the thought of possibly never seeing him again... not counting getting old and dying, but that would be a long time from now.

The friends headed to the museum after school. Atem and Serenity drove on the motorcycle while the rest of the gang rode in Joey's pickup truck with Joey driving. To everyone's surprise, except for Atem and Serenity, they found Seto Kaiba sitting on the bench with Mokuba next to him. Seto looked up and found Atem, then closed the book he was reading while waiting for everyone. Mokuba held Seto's suitcase with both hands and walked to the gang.

Atem walked up to Seto, they clasped their right hands, then embraced each other with their left before separating. Atem showed a really sincere smile with a sense of joy in it.

"Welcome back, Seto," Atem greeted.

"Good to see you've brought the dweebs," Seto smirked.

"_Excuse me!_ You'd like to say that to my face?" Joey glared as Seto rolled his eyes.

"Why is _he_ here?" Tristan asked.

"Does this answer your question?" Seto asked rhetorically, holding up the millennium rod.

"Oh... right... forgot," Tristan blushed, rubbing the back of his neck.

"I brought my necklace," Serenity said.

"You brought the ring, Ryan?" Atem asked.

"Right here," Ryan smirked, showing the millennium ring around his neck.

"Now all we need is the scale, key, and eye," Atem said.

"We know Shadi has the scale and key, but what about the eye?" Hanaski asked.

"Ryan, did you find the millennium eye anywhere?" Atem asked.

"I looked! Couldn't find the damn thing!" Ryan replied intensively.

_"Wonderful!"_ Atem cried out sarcastically, then let out a sigh. "It had to be the evil spirit that killed Pegasus! Who else could it have been?"

"I know _that_! I'm telling you, I couldn't find it anywhere! I looked!"

"I believe it, but I'm just frustrated with this! Yugi needs to have his memories!"

"Hey!" A familiar voice called out. Everyone gasped and looked out toward the parking lot, heading toward them. It was non other than the twins Yako and Gekko Tenma. They seemed to have some sort of _dark edge_ to them, but nobody could figure out what.

"What do _you two_ want? Haven't you already caused enough trouble two months ago?" Seto asked grimly.

"We have something I think you might need," Yako said as he dug into his pocket and retrieved the millennium eye. Everyone gasped.

"Where the hell did you get that?" Joey asked with suspicion in his eyes.

"It was mailed to us by... antonymous," Gekko replied, glaring intensely at Ryan, who shot one back. He turned his attention back to the group. "Anyways, we figured since our father is not here, we might as well help you in our father's place."

"Sounds fair... I guess, but don't think this means we trust you!"

"Don't worry, _trust_ isn't exactly what we're asking from you," Gekko smirked with folded arms.

"Is there a problem here?" Another voice asked, coming from who seemed to be an obese Egyptian with a white turban, a red vest, purple baggy pants, soft shoes, and golden earrings. He held an Egyptian accent and a huge smile that had a black mustache and a tee under the bottom lip.

"Wh-Who the hell are _you_?" Tristan and Joey asked together.

"I am Bobosa! It is my duty to protect the millennium items! By Master Shadi's orders, I am sent to accompany you!" Bobosa replied, opening his vest to show the two millennium items, scale and key, with other holes on his stomach and chest shaped like the other millennium items. Everyone cringed at the sight.

"EW! GROSS!" Tea responded.

_"You're expecting us to trust you, because you were sent by the same guy who tried to kill Tea?"_ Atem asked with glaring eyes and folded arms as if he wasn't believing a word of this.

"I swear, my allegiance is to protect you and the millennium items. Those were Master Shadi's orders," Bobosa promised truthfully.

"Protect Atem? _Right._ I believe Marik's duty was also to _protect Yugi and the millennium items_ and he tried to kill us," Seto smirked, also not believing this.

"He left the tomb keepers, that is true, but I have not left my spot. I am one of them and I completely understand that now isn't the best time for you to trust me."

_"No duh,"_ Atem muttered while rolling his eyes.

"Until then, I will accompany you on your journey. In time you will learn to trust me and put the items in my care. I am a human safe after all."

"Even if I did believe you, I couldn't let you have this," Atem smirked, waving his millennium puzzle.

"Or this," Ryan added, waving his millennium ring.

"I understand that. I can wait until the time comes. This safe is _completely_ secure for millennium items, the best there is!" Bobosa bragged, then closed up his vest and locked it with a golden key. He then threw it in his mouth and swallowed it. Everyone cringed, especially when Bobosa gagged it back up. "The safest place is in the stomach."

"EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEWWWWWWWWWWWW!" Everyone responded, mostly the girls.

"What is this guy?" Tristan asked.

"Some kind of circus freak!" Joey replied.

"Now, onto the point. Bring the Pharaoh here too," Bobosa said in a more serious manner. Yugi's spirit appeared next to Atem and Bobosa knelt on one knee to Atem, which made him feel extremely awkward. "Keeper of the Pharaoh's soul, you have come far from your journey to gather the items and cards you need to help Yugi face his true destiny and travel to the world of memories. The journey will be dangerous and you all will face many challenges along the way, you must never turn back and you must never give up. I do not know much about Yugi's memory or the millennium items, but this I do know; the answers you seek lies within the world of memory that only you can see with your own eyes." Bobosa got up, then turned around to lead the others inside. "Now, to the museum!"

Everyone followed Bobosa to inside the museum where the stoned slab was located, which was inside the basement of the museum. Yugi felt really nervous, but was ready to face his journey. He decided it was fair to switch with his brother, so he could be ready for anything. Once everyone was led to the basement, they not only found the stone slab hung on the wall, but also a huge table that looked like Ryan's RPG game board for playing _Monster World_, only this one seemed to be a world of Ancient Egypt. There was also a closed coffin at the very end of the room with five extra empty coffins over to the left of the room.

"This place gives me the creeps!" Joey responded.

"Hey Ryan, what's your _Monster World_ game doing here?" Tristan asked Ryan.

"How the hell should I know?" Ryan asked, shrugging his shoulders.

_"I have a bad feeling about this,"_ Tea responded.

"I do too," Yugi admitted nervously.

"Y-Yugi, can I give you something before we do anything?" Tea asked, then dug in her purse and showed a necklace with some sort of oval with some sort of stump under it. Yugi took it with question in his eyes.

"What's this?"

"It's a cartouche pendant. In Ancient Egypt, Pharaohs would carve their names on it. I know there's no name on there, but when you find your true name, not _Yugi_, I want you to write it on that cartouche, so you will never forget it."

"Tea... I-I don't know what to say!" Yugi responded with blush entering his cheeks. He put on the necklace around his neck, then held Tea close to him from the waist, kissing her passionately. Tea wrapped her arms around Yugi's head, her fingers tangling through his dark black hair as their lips curved around the other, having their last time of tasting their lips and mouth before departing.

"Um... guys... uh I can see you're..." Joey said, kinda feeling awkward.

"Oh Joey, let them have their moment. This will probably be their last time together," Serenity smirked, slapping her brother's back playfully.

"Besides that, you've seen Atem french kiss Serenity plenty of times!" Tristan smirked.

"Yeah, but... this is _Tea_!"

Yugi and Tea finally finished their kiss. Tea moaned deeply as she let her chin rest on Yugi's shoulder, wrapping her arms around his waist. Yugi kissed Tea's neck before nibbling her ear, which made Joey almost twitch. Ryan personally was enjoying Joey's cringing moments of Yugi making love with Tea. Tea kissed Yugi once more before finally separating as their hands slowly separated from each other until their fingertips barely touched.

Yugi sighed, then said, "I'm ready!" He turned to the stone slab of him and his cousin, who was the past life of Seto, having some sort of duel or battle. His eyes furrowed, reading the instructions. "Okay, first I need the god cards!" He dug into his deck pocket and retrieved the three Egyptian God cards. He stood on his tip toes to place the cards on the right slot that showed the same picture as the cards. After placing all three of them in their spots, Yugi turned to his friends. "We each must face the stone slab with the seven millennium items! In history, the Pharaoh held the puzzle while his priests held the other six items! Each of you must carry a millennium item and use it!"

"I'll take the millennium eye, but I am not gorging this in my eye socket, if that's what you're asking," Gekko volunteered as Yako gave his brother the eye.

"What about the scale and key?" Tristan asked.

"Two of you must take one item," Bobosa explained, opening his vest, showing the two other items. "The two that have helped defeat Yugi's opponents during Battle City must take one item!"

"I'll take one!" Joey volunteered. He took the millennium key and hung it around his neck. "Eh... not the best bling."

"I'll take the scale!" Hanaski volunteered, taking the millennium scale and holding it in front of him. "This feels weird."

"Serenity will be on my left, next will be Seto, then Joey," Yugi instructed.

"You're kidding... right?" Joey asked glaring at Seto, who shot one right back. Despite this dislike, they lined themselves on Yugi's left like instructed.

"On my right will be Yako, followed by Hanaski and Ryan," Yugi instructed as everyone lined up according to his instructions.

"Now what?" Ryan asked.

"I will say the spell that's unscripted on the stone slab!" Yugi replied as everyone gave each other glances. He began speaking in some sort of weird language, which sounded gibberish to everyone as the seven millennium items, including the god cards, began to glow brightly. The millennium items glowed a brilliant gold while the Egyptian god cards glowed in three different colors: Ra was yellow, Obelisk was blue, and Slifer was red. The whole room glowed with brilliance before it flashed like an atomic bomb. Everyone in the room, except for the Tenma brothers, Yugi, and Ryan, fell unconscious onto the floor. The twins jumped aback about this shock.

"What just happened?" Yako asked with suspicion.

_"The Shadow Game has just begun!"_ Ryan replied in a more demonic voice this time. The millennium eye began to glow in Gekko's hands.

"Look out! It's not Ryan!" Yugi warned the twins as Yako ran to his brother, holding the millennium eye as well.

Yami Ryou chuckled darkly as the millennium eye began glowing brighter and the twins' eyes began to turn to a crimson red. Yami Ryou walked up to the twins, taking the eye, then smirked sinisterly, saying, "I will find you both _very useful_ to my game. If you both want to know the truth, I killed your father and took his eye, because your vengeance was enough to make two perfect vessels for two... _personal friends_ of mine. _Hehehe_."

"Leave them alone!" Yugi cried out.

"It's too late, Pharaoh! If you want to save them and your friends, you have to participate in a little game of mine called _Millennium World_," Yami Ryou explained as Yugi stared at his enemy with slight fear. "Here's how the game works. There are two souls in control of the game. You, the Pharaoh of Egypt, and me. We each have a name that is the key to unlocking ultimate power. Whoever finds his true name, gains this_ ultimate power_. Your friends' vessels are also trapped in these five coffins over there." He pointed to the empty coffins, where Yako and Gekko placed Tea, Serenity, Joey, Tristan, and Seto like robots with red eyes. "For now, they are trapped within the millennium puzzle, looking for the door, which leads out of your puzzle and into your memories. _Do you get it?_" Yugi rose two eyebrows, realizing that his puzzle descended over-top of the game board Millennium World. "The only way to save your friends, including your precious _brother_, is to defeat me. I also have a little... _partner_ of mine, who was just _dying_ to see you again." Yami Ryou opened the coffin across the room, which revealed as a dead corpse of _someone_ Yugi knew he met before. Tears began developing as he felt bitter sadness entering his body. "That's right! He is your long lost uncle, who betrayed you by selling his soul to the darkness. He also created the items."

_"No,"_ Yugi muttered, more tears pouring out.

"This game takes place in Ancient Egypt based on true events that happened with a few _minor changes_, including the time frame, because a king ruling and defeating a war in three days would just make this memory _ridiculous_, especially since you started your reign at age 13. We each have a character card. I have the thief king card and you have the Pharaoh card. We each hold a deck and take turns drawing a card. On the first turn, we draw seven cards. Each time we draw a card, a person or object of that memory appears on the card. If the card is a person, their life point gauge is located on the bottom of the card. When it reaches zero, it goes to the graveyard. By paying from the life point gauge, a priest can summon a monster to battle. When the player doesn't command them, the characters behave according to their real life motivation 3000 years ago. You will also see the cards of seven millennium items in front of you. You start out with them and must keep them safe. Once I gather all seven of them, I can place them on the tablet located in Kul Elna and reveal my true name. That will gain me ultimate power. Though, there is a disadvantage. While you don't remember your own pathetic name, _I_ remember my own, so you must protect the cards or I will destroy it. To win the game, one of us must destroy our opponent's own character card. Got it?"

"Got it!" Yugi replied, staring at the seven millennium item cards.

"Good, now draw seven cards, so we can start the game," Yami Ryou said as Yugi drew seven cards and each of them appeared as a priest. "One thing I must warn you. This game will depend on more than the life of your friends, the conclusion of the game will decide the fate of the world as you know it."


	5. Voyage Into Memories

**Okay, here comes the next chapter. This will go differently from the last one, because... well I think you already get the idea. I just wanted to make sure the story connects and doesn't go all over the place like the last Yu-Gi-Oh Millennium World. Review please!**

It was quiet. There was no sound to be heard, even when trying to hear some kind of noise: birds chirping, cars driving, the clock ticking. There was no sound... non. On top of that, the group felt they were lying on some sort of hard stoned floor. Most of the gang sat up from the ground, gasping when they realized _where_ they've woken up at.

Atem was the last person to get up, knowing _exactly_ where he was. He was inside his brother's soul room that was nothing, but a maze with bright walls. Staircases, doors, walls, and floors were everywhere. It was almost like the staircases in Harry Potter, only more confusing, the staircases never moved, and there was no ceiling. It was like never-ending stairs filled with dead ends.

"Where are we?" Joey asked.

"My millennium necklace is gone!" Serenity cried out.

"Guess your fortunetelling license has expired," Seto slightly teased.

"We have been sent to Yugi's soul room. It's our duty to find the true door hidden in Yugi's mind room," Bobosa explained. "Shadi had once entered here to find the true door, but could not find it. Come to find out, Yugi didn't know where it was either."

"Damn," Tristan responded.

"Atem," Tea called out, seeing Atem sitting on the floor looking like he was in his own world. He seemed to be worried about something. "Atem! Earth to Atem!" Tea waved a hand in front of Atem's face.

_"I can't find him,"_ Atem muttered as everyone stared at him confused. "I can't find Yugi! He's gone!"

"Yugi has entered into the world of his memories!" Bobosa explained as Atem turned his head to the huge Egyptian man. "It is our job to find the door out of the puzzle and enter into the world of Yugi's memories. Until then, you cannot have any contact with Yugi the way you used to."

"So you mean we have to look through all these doors to find Yugi?" Joey asked, almost freaking out.

"Couldn't get any worse," Ryan smirked with folded arms, then realized something. "Wait, I can't contact Ryou!" He closed his eyes, calling out to his brother. _"Where's Ryou?"_

"Perhaps reliving the events in the past just like Yugi. I knew there was something odd about you. You hold the spirit of the thief king," Bobosa replied, furrowing his eyebrows.

"The _what_ now?"

"I guess if we're gonna find Yugi, we might as well start lookin'," Joey announced to everyone.

"But where the heck are we gonna look first? There are doors everywhere! Finding the right one will be like finding a needle in a haystack!" Atem complained.

"I guess that's why Yugi's soul room is so _a-mazing_," Tristan joked, chuckling in the process.

_"Ha ha,"_ Tea said sarcastically with folded arms.

"I'll go check in this door!" Joey said, walking to the first door, opening it, then almost falling off the edge on the other side of the door. _"WHA!"_ He hung onto the edge of the floor as everyone gasped, then looked up and saw half of Joey dangling from above them.

"Okay, how does _this_ make any sense?" Tristan asked, looking baffled.

"Joey, grab by hands!" Atem said, rushing to his friend and pulling him up through the door. "These doors are full of traps!"

"Why didn't cha say something, man?"

"Because you have a tendency of rushing into things before we get to _explain_ anything."

"Co'mon! We have to find Yugi and we can't find him if we just stand here fighting!" Tea cried out.

"She's right. If we're going to find Yugi, we're gonna have to start looking," Hanaski agreed.

"But there's too many doors! We might end up looking into the same one!" Atem pointed out.

"Wait, I have an idea!" Hanaski said, then dug into his pocket to get something, but couldn't find anything. "_What the..._ where's my marker?"

"Anything, besides clothing that you had in the real world, is not here," Bobosa explained.

"Wait, I think I might have something! I'll be right back!" Atem cried out as he ran through a curtain door, opening to a hallway that gaped between Yugi's and his own soul room. He opened the door to his soul room, then returned to his friends with six black markers. "I think I know what Hanaski is going for. We can use these to mark the door we looked through. That way, we'll know if we've looked through it or not."

"Great idea! Why didn't I think of that?" Joey asked himself, smacking his hand on his forehead.

"Just pick a marker and start looking. After looking through the door, draw a smiley face to indicate that we've already looked there," Atem instructed as everyone nodded and picked up a marker.

Everyone began looking through each door, trying to avoid a trap. Each door that was a fake and led to a trap was drawn a smiley face on it. What surprised everyone was the fact that the ink never faded, despite the markers being drawn on stoned doors. Atem was thankful that he used to like drawing things as a kid and still kinda does; that was how he found the markers in his soul room.

Joey was feeling anxiously frustrated at this search. Just when he was about to punch something, he opened one door and light shone through and he screamed bloody murder. Everyone gasped just as Joey disappeared. Atem ran to Joey's direction, but there was no sign of him. It was as if his body just _disappeared_. The worst part was there were only three out of eight doors with smiley faces at the direction Atem heard the scream.

"Joey! Where are you?" Atem cried out.

* * *

Joey screamed and lifted himself up from the dirt floor, then gasped, "huh?" He examined himself and found a white cloth for a blanket covering him and no clothes on his body. His body held dirt in some areas, it was hot, and he was inside a small hut made of bake dirt walls. Joey was staring at his hands, panting for air and trying to figure out where he was.

"Joseph, is there something wrong?" A familiar voice cried out, appearing from the opening that was covered with a cloth. _It was Damon!_ He was tall, dark skinned, seemed to hold alot of muscular tone, and held short black hair that was unkept. He wore only a white man-shirt made of linen. "I heard a scream!"

"Damon, what the..." Joey asked, then realized he was naked. "OH CRAP, I'M NAKED!"

"Of course you're _naked_! We always sleep naked! You must've had a nightmare. Your clothes are in the basket. I washed them this morning. I need you to dress up and wash. I have food being prepared, little brother," Damon said with his normal smile before leaving.

"Huh?" Joey questioned, then removed the white sheet from his body to reveal his naked body. "I must be in Yugi's memories... I think. I don't see how... unless these are _my_ memories."

"Joseph, if you keep talking to yourself, your food's gonna get cold!"

"I'm coming, Damon!" Joey called out with blush on his cheeks. He wrapped the man skirt around his waist, trying to figure out how to put it on. This became such an embarrassment, since all Joey had to do was put on a stupid skirt and didn't know how. Then, he saw a tie belt inside the basket, then took it to tie the skirt in place. Then, Joey put on the most uncomfortable sandals he ever wore in his life. "_There we go!_ Now, to figure out how to wash up without showers." Joey entered outside onto an open area of weird looking grass and bushes and a wide open field full of wheat.

"You're finally out, did you wash up?" Damon asked. "Your food is going to get cold."

"N-Not yet. Couldn't find the belt... thingy," Joey blushed as Damon sighed while rolling his eyes.

"Hurry up! We have a long day ahead of us and lots of work to do!"

_"R...ight,"_ Joey responded, then saw a bowl with water in it. "I guess that's how they wash up." He dipped his hands in the bowl, then splashed some on his face, especially since it was hot outside. "Okay, I'm ready!" He ran to where his brother was located. He saw a huge caldron, which held soup inside cooked. It smelled good and made Joey's mouth water. "What's that?"

"It's a recipe from Mother," Damon replied, seeming to show a hint of sadness.

_"I miss her too,"_ Joey partly lied, since he had never met his ancient mother in his entire life, though he did feel sorry for the poor guy.

"Anyways, we must eat up. We have a long day ahead of us!"

"Okay!" Joey replied, then got out a clay bowl, filling it with soup. He sat on the ground and sipped from it before his eyes widened, and then swallowed it. "I LOVE THIS! MAN, YOU'RE A DAMN GOOD COOK!" Joey drank the whole bowl as Damon laughed, then drank his soup. Joey kept having more of that soup until his stomach was full. He was glad to have had very tasty morning food.

"Okay, little brother! Time for us to get to work!" Damon called out as he walked to the fence where several bulls stood. Joey was amazed at the amount of animals there were on the farm. There were different fences keeping pigs, caves, horses, goats, and sheep. "Joseph, I need your help!" Joey ran to Damon and helped him get out the bull.

"What are we gonna use the bull for?" Joey asked.

"To plow the field of course!" Damon replied with furrowed eyebrows, pointing to the wheat field.

"THAT? ALL _THAT_?" Joey asked dumbfounded. The field seemed to go for miles!

"Hook the bull to the plow!"

"You gotta be shitting me! I haven't even got a bathroom break yet!"

_"What?"_

"You know... gotta take a shit."

"Hurry up! You can go behind those bushes!"

"WHA? WHAT AM I GONNA USE AS TOILET PAPER?"

_"What in the world is that?"_

"How do I _wipe my ass_?" Joey asked with frustration.

"Use the grass or your hand!"

"THE F***? I HAVE TO USE _WHAT_ ON MY _WHAT?_" Joey cried out, looking even more freaked out than before. Though, he felt a huge turd coming out. "I think I'll take my chances." He ran behind the bushes, pulling up his skirt. _"Great, I'm in Ancient Egypt, I'm wearing a dress, and I brought no toilet paper."_

"Talking to yourself isn't gonna get the job done quicker!"

"I'm coming!" Joey called out, letting his poo come out. "Okay, hand or grass... grass." He got out a handful of grass, wrapping it in a bun, then wiped it on his behind to clean his butt. He also found out that dipping it in water helps too. After going to the _'bathroom'_, he began hooking up the bull to the plow to start plowing the field.


	6. The Six Chosen Priests

**Yeah, I know I made a poo joke in the last chapter and I don't care. Anyways, Joey's gonna be stuck for a while and we won't be seeing him for a while neither. It will also take a while to see what's going on with Atem and the others, who are looking for the true door to get to Yugi's memories. Enjoy this chapter! Review please!**

Yugi felt slightly dizzy after chanting the spell to return his memories. He felt weird, and not just because he was sitting on a chair for some reason. A moan left his nose as he tried to wake up, despite being tired and dizzy. _Why was he feeling this way?_ Yugi wanted to sleep and didn't know why.

_"Pharaoh!"_ Yugi heard his grandpa call. Since when did he call Yugi _Pharaoh_? He was too busy wanting to go to sleep. "Pharaoh!"

Yugi moaned and began finally opening his eyes, beginning to see shapes and colors. He rubbed his eyes, yawned, then remembered he was trying to return his memories. He gasped and glanced all around in panic. It seemed he was brought to a very unfamiliar area... at least he wasn't sure if it was _unfamiliar_ or not. It looked like some sort of throne room with men in front of him with man skirts and leopard skin.

_"Wha.. where am I?"_ Yugi asked in panic, then took a hold of his puzzle with one hand. _'Brother, are you there? BROTHER! BROTHER!'_ Atem wasn't answering! Something was horribly wrong!

"Somebody's been drinking a little too much last night," another familiar voice teased with a devious smirk across his lips. It was Seto Kaiba... or looked like him anyways. He wore a white man's skirt with some gold and silver decorations on the skirt and belt and leopard skin around his upper body, showing most of his muscular arms. A short headdress was worn upon his head like some sort of _crown_ and he held the millennium rod.

"Huh?" Yugi responded, seemingly very confused at the moment.

"Lord Seth, give your cousin some decent respect! He's the new Pharaoh after all!" What looked to be like Solomon rebuked.

"Just because he's king of Egypt doesn't mean I'm going to kiss his feet! Despite the fact I'm _under him_, he'll always be my cousin and won't be treated any different. Besides, I think it would make him feel more _comfortable_, won't it Yugi?" Seth asked as Yugi looked around blushing nervously.

"S-Sure... it is fine!" Yugi said, trying to figure out what was going on. He looked around and noticed the other people. Half of them were rather bald or held shoulder length black hair and they all carried millennium items. The woman with the millennium necklace looked an awfully alot like Ishizu, the man with the millennium ring looked an awfully alot like Mahad, and the man who carried the millennium key looked an awfully alot like Odion, only with makeup. The men that wore the millennium scale and ring wore shoulder-length hair and the men that wore the millennium key and eye had no hair at all.

Yugi began realizing he had gone back in time 3000 years ago when he ruled as Pharaoh. He also began noticing the outfit and jewelry he was wearing that matched the vision he, his brother, and Seto had during Battle City. He also recognized Seth from that vision, only without the glowing red eyes. There were also the other people, who seemed to be priests, wearing leopard skin. It seemed that Seth, among all the other priests, wore fancier jewelry and clothing, probably due to the fact he was Yugi's cousin, making him a prince. _Makes sense!_

Yugi looked over to his right and found, what looked to be like, his grandfather, only with Ancient Egyptian clothing. This version of Yugi's grandpa wore a white man's skirt with some blue and gold decorations and a belt with the same design, his upper body consisted of some fancy colorful clothing wrap, and wore a headdress, but one that wasn't as fancy as Seth's. Yugi wasn't sure who this version of his grandfather was, but he was sure it wasn't his grandpa.

"Great Pharaoh, at all times, you must act with dignity to make a representation of the living gods. To fall asleep on the throne... oh the shame of it," the grandpa look-alike said as Yugi sighed, placing his hand on his forehead.

"Sorry... um..." Yugi said, trying to remember this guy's name.

"Shimon, your adviser!"

"_Right._ I'm _really_ tired. I will try to look my best though," Yugi promised with his childish smile.

"Of course you're _tired_. That's why you slept on the throne," Seth smirked as the man with the millennium eye gave him a disapproved look.

"My Pharaoh!" One of the guards called as Yugi rose two eyebrows. The guard wore a simple man's skirt and bald head. "We have found a tomb robber amongst the Valley of the Kings! Shall we open the court?"

"Y-Yes! Of course!" Yugi replied, not knowing what else to say. He was confused over half the events taking place.

A man bald with a white man's skirt was brought out, who seemed built. The guards pushed him in front of Yugi and his priests below the steps. Yugi bit his bottom lip, trying to remember what he should do in this type of situation.

"We caught this man entering the tomb of the former Pharaoh!" The guard declared.

"I am not a thief! I did not steal anything!" The thief lied before the guard took out his whip and whipped the man across the back, blood splattering on the floor, which made Yugi almost cringe. "I admit, I did enter inside to steal, but I swear to you when I entered, I saw nothing. The tomb was empty when I entered!"

"It seems he speaks the truth," the priest with the millennium eye said.

"Those who enter the resting place of the Pharaohs shall face gods' judgment for it is the territory of the gods!" the guard said as the prisoner glared and shot the priests and Yugi a nasty glare.

"There seems to be no end to these thieves who would rob the royal tombs. These sinners shall be judged by the seven holy relics, the millennium items," Shimon explained as Yugi rose two eyebrows, then nodded to him. "Lord Shada will go first."

Shada, the priest who held the millennium key, held it forward at the prisoner directly as he gasped and the two stood still for several seconds. Shada said, "just like I suspected. I see an evil Ka inside his man's soul room. Aknadin, it is your turn."

"Very well!" Aknadin, the priest and holder of the millennium eye, stepped forward and his millennium eye began to glow. The prisoner screamed at the top of his lungs as a shadow form appeared in front of the six priests. Yugi gasped in horror at the creature appearing before him.

"The anger and hatred inside every man's heart create negative emotions. Eventually, they can grow so far as to create an evil Ka that controls the person to do such horrible crimes. Some even call these creatures _demons_. Their powers increase by creating more rage and sorrow," Shimon explained as Yugi continued to watch the judgment taking place. The shadow from the prisoner was revealed as a demonic creature of some sort, which looked like something from Duel Monsters. "These six chosen priests, chosen by the millennium items, have the power to expose these creatures and seal them into stone slabs."

_"Stone?"_ Yugi questioned curiously. He watched as four guards carried out a stone slab that seemed to reach ten feet.

Seth stepped forward with a smirk upon his lips. Teeth showed in his grin as he took out his millennium rod and pointed it at the demonic creature standing before the prisoner. The millennium rod glowed with brilliance as the creature began floating in midair and its spirit merged with the stone slab as it roared in pain. Yugi gasped in amazement of this terrific performance.

"Well done, Lord Seth," Aknadin congratulated Seth.

"I'm sure, knowing Yugi, it was _amusing_. Though, _anything_ will amuse the premature Pharaoh. For any regular human being, this would be dull," Seth responded with such a snobby tone. Non of the other priests seemed displeased by the way Seth talked to Yugi and acknowledged him, because of his informal language. Yugi remembered that Pharaohs were always treated _formally_ by everyone, even family members, though children and queens were questioned. "We might as well decide a punishment for this one for our amusement. How about we feed this thief to the crocodiles? That should be enough amusement for me."

"Seth, his Ka has been released! Part of our job is to show mercy to those who don't deserve it. _Don't you agree?_"

"Hmph, I think that's for the Pharaoh to decide. What do _you_ think?" Seth asked, facing Yugi.

Yugi felt nervousness enter his body, sweat pouring from his neck. He remembered the penalties for entering the Pharaoh's tomb and robbing from it. He also remembered Shadi and when he tried to pass judgment onto Professor Hawkins for doing the same act. Though, compared to that incident, this guy _knew_ what he was doing._ Did he deserve punishment or not?_

"You say when you entered, you saw nothing?" Yugi asked as the man nodded. "Would you have happened to see the one who robbed my father's tomb?"

"N-No... I haven't! I did see some men with black hooded cloaks, but that was it! Nothing else! They disappeared before I could make out who or what they were!"

"Thank you. I shall reward you with mercy. If you are caught again, it will be death," Yugi declared as the prisoner nodded with trembling fear. "I sentence his man to seven years of hard labor! Take him away!" The prisoner was taken by the guards without putting up a fight. Seth humphed, not really agreeing with this decision.

_"You're too soft, Yugi,"_ Seth muttered as he faced the holder of the millennium ring. "And aren't _your_ guards supposed to be in charge of guarding the royal tombs? The royal tombs are too often defiled! I would be questioning your carelessness if _I_ were Pharaoh, Mahad."

"My deepest apologies, but my millennium ring has been acting hectic due to the number of evil Ka's forming these last few days," Mahad explained as Yugi looked at his dear friend, whom he knew would soon be his soul card Dark Magician. Yugi nodded.

"I understand, Mahad," Yugi replied to his friend. He turned his head to Seth, shooting him a glare. "Seth, you should let _me_ rebuke my priests if I have to. You are not the Pharaoh of Egypt as of yet and I will not allow my priests bossing each other around like a father toward his child. That is my duty, is it not? That being said, I do not mind if you talk to me informally or not. You are my family and blood relative and I would be displeased if you treated me like a stranger."

Seth smiled and bowed his head, replying, "very well." He turned to Mahad. "I apologize for my actions, Lord Mahad."

"Thank you, Seth."

"Great Pharaoh, I request permission to send more troops to strengthen the guards at the Valley of the Kings," Mahad requested.

"Of course, Mahad," Yugi replied with a nod.

"Take the new Ka to the Shrine of Wedju with the other stones!" Seth ordered.

"Yes sir!" the guards replied, moving the stone tablet of the prisoner's Ka out of the palace.

Yugi sighed in relief from all the stress he had been building up and all the confusion that was taking place. He seemed to be growing used to this _Pharaoh _business as if he had grown up with it. Perhaps he was starting to become more familiar in the role he was playing. Yugi could guess that and seeing tha Seth called him _Yugi_ told him that rather the name was more than just _a name the priests came up with_ or this whole world was an RPG game and he didn't know what his true name was, so these two characters using his true name would've been pointless to begin with.

Shimon looked over at Yugi, realizing that he seemed to be holding alot of stress by the news of his father's tomb being robbed. He smiled lightheartedly.

"There is no need to worry about, Pharaoh! I have taken personal responsibility to design your tomb where you will have your eternal rest!" Shimon assured as Yugi and the rest of the priests stared at him with weird looks.

"I understand my tomb is important, but can we talk about this some other time?" Yugi asked politely.

"Uh right... sorry," Shimon apologized with slight blush.

"Th-That's fine," Yugi sighed.


	7. Ryou King of Thieves

**We will be staying with Yugi for a while before cutting back to the others and what they're doing. I want to do the scene with Bakura's first appearance before thinking about going back to what the others are doing. Review please!**

Yugi leaned back against his throne, letting out a sigh. He was still slightly confused about the situation he was in, but decided that maybe when he finally had some alone time he could figure the situation out. He began wishing in his mind that he could speak with Atem again. All Yugi wanted was to hear his voice and feel his presence that gave him joy and happiness. Even through the few minutes of being stuck in a palace not knowing what to do, Yugi missed and longed for Atem.

The millennium necklace glowed around the Ishizu look-alike's neck. She closed her eyes, seemingly very settle with seeing the future. This seemed like a reaction similar to Serenity, only her eyes stood open instead of closed when seeing the future.

"Priestess Isis, what did you see?" Aknadin asked with a horrified look on his face.

"An evil shadow approaches us, one with strong and incredible magic," Isis replied in a manner that was mixed between concern and meekness.

The priests all stood in positions, lining themselves as a shield for Yugi _almost_. It made him feel slightly uncomfortable, because he didn't want his new friends to get hurt before he did. Yugi though, didn't want to go into a debate and hoped that the priests didn't get harmed while protecting him. He tapped his fingers against the tip of the arm rests before hearing the sound of sandles walking across the floor ahead of the throne.

"Hey, what do you think you're doing?" One of the guards from the entrance asked a curtain intruder. "Stop where- yah!" A sound of a body being dragged was heard, bringing chills down Yugi's spine.

"A king is robed in gold, isn't he? That must make me a king too... the king of thieves," a familiar sinister voice responded before the sound of a sword slicing through flesh was heard. Yugi knew whom that voice belonged to, Yami Ryou.

Yugi watched his enemy walk forward in a short white skirt with a more fancier belt around his waist, gold cuffs, wristbands, neck jewelry, ear rings, and rings on almost each finger. There was also a crown upon his head that was a mix of the upper and lower land of Egyptian crown. A smirk was upon the man's face and Yugi _knew_ who robbed his father's tomb. The priests seemed to have taken a hint of this, seeing how much gold and jewelry this thief possessed.

What horrified more than the gold and jewelry this thief was carrying was the corpse dragging on the floor. _Was that the dead body of Yugi's father?_ Yugi began to turn very pale and slightly grossed out.

"Hello, isn't this a pleasant surprise? I came here to bring you some gifts I got from Aknamkanon's tomb," Yami Ryou smirked uncaringly as he threw the gold and fines from the tomb he robbed. He lifted up the dead corpse with the rope tied around its neck. "I even brought this from his coffin. Can't you set up better traps than those pathetic snakes and dead ends?"

"You dare defile Aknamkanon's tomb?" Shimon asked rhetorically in rage. _"Who are you?"_

"I am Ryou son of Bakura from Kul Elna... I'm sure _some of you_ might find that city _familiar_?" Yami Ryou asked as Aknadin seemed to be showing some fear Yugi was unknown about, then again, he was unknown to half the events going on currently. Yami Ryou began laughing so demonically and seductively. "Aren't you going to pass judgment to me, you foolish priests that kiss his royal feet?"

"You dare enter the throne room uninvited? It is a serious crime that shall not be forgiven!" Shada glared in rage.

_"I'm shaking in fear!"_ Yami Ryou said sarcastically, keeping his smirk like it was a walk in the park. "Among these fine jewelry, what I want most is your millennium items! I'm sure I will let you live if you hand them to me without a fight."

"For a common thief, you stand before six priests with guts. I must give you credit for that. We'll be sure the canopic jar for it is bigger after we kill you," Seth smirked with confidence.

"The law and order of this world is maintained through these seven millennium items! The only ones who can possess these are priests who have trained their souls to possess them, including the divine Pharaoh who rules this land!" Aknadin declared boldly. "If a person like you, with such a heart of evil, were to touch any of these, your soul would be burned away. The gods themselves shall punish you to your death!"

"Interesting. It makes me want them even more."

"Then, _I'll _be the first to give you a demonstration," Seth smirked intensely.

"Very well. In fact, I shall challenge _all_ of you priests at once, since you think your skills are enough to defeat me!" Yami Ryou declared with such boldness. Yugi knew this would not turn out well, knowing Yami Ryou's power.

"Do not worry, my Pharaoh. A common thief does not stand a chance against six priests with magical powers," Shimon assured.

"This thief isn't your ordinary_ common thief_," Yugi said in a warning tone as Shimon looked at him with two risen eyebrows. "I fear there maybe a strong Ka inside this one."

"Nonsense! There is no Ka that could be strong enough! You should not doubt your priests!"

"It's not my _doubt_, it's theirs I'm worried about," Yugi explained, he turned to Shimon's direction. "I remember my studies I learned as a child. Every person has two halves of a soul, their Ba and their Ka. The Ba is the life supply of the soul that is fed to the physical half of the soul, the Ka. A Ka represents a reflection of every person of who he is, his complexity, among other things. A Ka can rather be of a powerful god or demon, depending on the person's personality, and each of these Ka's are fueled by the Ba." Shimon nodded, impressed by Yugi's knowledge. "Though, a curtain emotion or complexity can strengthen that_ Ka monster_. That is what I see, Shimon. I see dark hatred and rage inside this man that may fuel his Ka. If my instincts are correct, this man maybe harder to defeat than your regular common thief. In fact, it may take more than Seth removing this man's Ka and sealing it in a stone slab."

_"Pharaoh..."_

"So far, my instincts haven't proved me wrong yet and I'm hoping it does today."

The priest with the millennium scale noticed the scale wobbling from side to side. He gasped fearfully.

"This man's heart is unweighable! _How is this possible?_" The man with the millennium scale asked horrorfully.

"That's because this common thief is also possessed," Yugi replied surely as the priests turned to their king with such shock. He furrowed his eyebrows. "I knew from the moment he stepped in... this thief's heart cannot be weighed, because it's the heart of an innocent man controlled by a demon."

"I see this too!" Isis implied with such a horrific expression. "Some demon with such hatred and rage is possessing one of pure innocents. This makes him unweighable."

"It is as I expected. This man maybe more dangerous than just_ a common thief_," Yugi concluded, showing a confident, but fearful glare.

"This _man_ you say I'm possessing came from a land destroyed by bloody hands to create the items you so say _keeps law and order_. I want to know what_ law and order_ really is?" Yami Ryou mentioned with a demonic smirk on his face as the priests gasped, still keeping their glares.

"YOU LIE!" Aknadin shouted with such a glare. He turned to Shada. "Lord Shada, go into this man's soul, but be careful!"

Shada brought out his millennium key and it began to glow. Yami Ryou showed his same griny smirk as Shada went inside the man's soul. He jumped aback, then was caught by Aknadin with sweat pouring down his face.

"His Ka is too huge and I saw the real boy! He has the mind of a ten-year-old! This man was possessed since the age of ten! We are going to need a bigger slab!" Shada said.

"I don't think we'll have time for that!" Aknadin said with panic on his face as a monster appeared before the priests. It looked like some sort of dark demon that was half man with a snake for a tail. It almost reached to the top of the palace.

"I want you to meet Diabound the Beast Spirit of Death! He exists inside this mere boy you call _innocent_, whom you have done wrong against, compared to me!" Yami Ryou smirked as the priests glared even deeper. "According to your _justice_, as long as I'm loyal, it's considered _good_! You can wipe out a single town and call that _justice_ in your books as long as it's _for the good of mankind_! How can you truly know what is good or evil when each of you has done evil at his or her own time?"

Seth pointed his millennium rod at Diabound to seal it in the stone slab, despite what Shada said. Yami Ryou smirked with pure confidence, knowing this was not going to work. Once Seth sealed Diabound inside the stone slab, it began to show cracks. The cracks in the stone slab grew bigger and bigger until it burst into piles of rubble. Yugi gasped, putting his arms in front of his face to protect it from the oncoming rubble.

"You're going to have to do better than that, Lord Seth. Nobody can surpass my Diabound!" Yami Ryou smirked.

"This is impossible!" Shimon cried out.

"It's as possible as I expected it," Yugi said, then eying his father's corpse. "I have to go get my father's corpse!"

"No, my king, it's too dangerous! Stay here! Let your royal priests handle this!"

_"But..."_ Yugi muttered, looking at the priests, then his father's mummified body.

"Perhaps it is time to show you the true _power_ of us priests," Seth smirked with confidence.

"Then, bring it on, you damn priests!" Yami Ryou shouted with a demonic smirk upon his lips.

"Lord Seth, let us combine our powers! We can-" Aknadin suggested just as Seth was about to go out for an attack.

"No, I can handle this man myself!" Seth protested. He began chanting a spell, lifting his millennium rod. Yugi began remembering that holders of millennium items can summon monsters, sealed in stone slabs from the Shrine of Wedju. When a prisoner is judged and his Ka is sealed inside the stone slab, it is taken to this shrine and anyone possessing a millennium item can summon out three of the sealed Ka's from there. Seth summoned Galestgoras, one of the Ka's inside the Shrine of Wedju. It was a big ferocious dragon with a huge long neck, pointy fins on its head, razor sharp claws and teeth, and stood as slightly taller than Diabound. "Let's see how your _powerful monster_ stands against Galestgoras!"

"Galestgoras maybe a powerful monster, but he came from the soul of a criminal! I have surpassed beyond _a criminal_, dear Seth! I am the king of thieves after all!"

"We'll see about that! I don't need to call out another Ka to defeat yours!"

_"Cocky, aren't we, your majesty!"_ Yami Ryou mocked as Seth glared and the monsters began to attack. Galestgoras flew out at Diabound and bit its arm. Seth's eyes widened with intention before Diabound used its other arm to punch across Galestgoras' face, though the dragon ignored it and pinned Diabound to the ground.

"It seems your Diabound isn't as powerful as you bragged it to be," Seth smirked as Galestgoras took Diabound by the snake tail and smashed it onto the ground. Then, Galestgoras dropped itself onto Diabound before the monster disappeared into thin air. "WHAT?"

"_You were saying?_ Diabound also has a very deadly ability to move through walls. I would be watching my back if I were you, oh noble Prince," Yami Ryou mocked before Seth felt a huge punch from behind that sent him falling onto the hard bricked ground, making his monster disappear. Seth knew that if someone, who summoned a Ka, was knocked to the ground, his or her focus couldn't be on the monster and it would disappear. "It seems our high priest didn't stand a chance against my Diabound. This is getting boring! How about a match between us, Pharaoh? Small fries like your pathetic priests don't stand a chance against _me_!" Yugi glared intensely at Yami Ryou, then his dead father lying on the ground. _Isn't anyone noticing that Yugi's dead corpse father is still_ lying on the ground_ in the middle of battle?_ "I'll make a deal with you. If you win Pharaoh you can have my head as your trophy, but if I win, I'll have your life, your gold finery, and _your millennium items_!"

"How dare you use such defile words against the Pharaoh! There shall be no mercy for you!" Aknadin shouted.

"My father's body is lying on the ground in the midst of battle and all you care about is this thief's _insults_ against me?" Yugi shouted at Aknadin with irritation. The priests gave each other glances while Seth wiped the blood off his lips. Yugi glared at Yami Ryou. "Why do you want the millennium items anyways?"

"Why don't you ask your father, you so happen to want to _rescue_ so badly?" Yami Ryou replied, lifting up the corpse's head with the rope tied around it.

"You barbarian! I will make you pay dearly for this!" Seth glared in anger.

"Make me pay for making this wretch crawl? The one who brought the millennium items to this world by allowing my town to be destroyed?" Yami Ryou asked rhetorically.

"He did no such thing! King Aknamkanon ruled 40 years and put an end to all wars, bringing peace and harmony!" Aknadin defended.

"Peace for _you_!"

"Pharaoh Aknamkanon wished to use the millennium items to bring peace for this war-torn country! That is why he allowed the millennium items to be made! They are to be used to bring justice and righteousness!"

"Don't make me laugh! Sure, he used the items to make _peace_, but how does that make _destroying poor Ryou's home town_ any right? To destroy millions of citizens, both women and children? To make dark magic with the power to contact the spirits of the Shadow Realm? How does that make your so called _former Pharaoh_ righteous? If you ask me, it seems like this _righteousness_ is a white wash excuse for power and domination! Isn't that what monarchy is for?"

"You lie!" Seth shouted with glaring eyes, though Yugi had other thoughts. There was no doubt these items did possess dark and evil power. _Had his father truly create these items by destroying lives, including women and children?_

"This is no lie, dear Prince. In fact, under the city of Kul Elna is a secret shrine where the items were created. They were created on the tablet, which is a door to the Shadow Realm where the demon Zorc awaits to be freed once more and cause destruction! That is my true goal in possessing those items around your necks!" Yami Ryou explained as Yugi showed a fighting glare. The villain showed a smirk, then tugged on the rope a little bit more. "There's no doubt Aknamkanon created the items for power and world domination. It's already plain obvious. Why else would he create such powerful and wicked items?"

"LEAVE HIM ALONE!" Yugi shouted in grief, quickly lifting himself off the throne.

"So, you finally decided to get your ass off your throne, Pharaoh?"

"You shall not touch the Pharaoh and you shall pay for such disrespect!" Shada cried out with glaring eyes.

"Such annoying priests you are. Very well, bring it on!"

"Wait... my father!" Yugi cried, but his priests have already summoned their monsters. He could only see feel the suffering of his heart as he stared at the dead corpse of his father lying there while the monsters fight against Diabound.

"Pharaoh, I know you are in alot of pain. I can say this for curtain, being your father's priest for many years, he was a good, strong, and noble Pharaoh, who dedicated his life to bringing peace to his country and to his people," Shimon assured while Yugi only stared blankly at the corps lying next to Yami Ryou's feet. He could only remember small fragments of his father's face, but nothing else. He could not let this body be harmed while the battle was commencing. He ran down the steps, which led to his throne. "Wait, it's too dangerous down there! The monsters are attacking! Return to the throne!"

"My priests should've taken my father's body out of Ryou's hands!" Yugi cried back, feeling the acing and swelling pain within his heart, while running down to his father's body. The monsters finally clashed, Diabound punched a snaky monster, then used its snake tail to bite off the panther monster, belonging to Shada. Shada cringed, clutching onto his chest in pain.

"What power is this?" Mahad asked in shock.

"Keep your Ba strong!" Aknadin cried out.

"You priests are such- _yah!_" Yami Ryou smirked before he was pushed aside by Yugi's strong arms. It took every ounce of will power to keep Diabound on the field. Yami Ryou watched as Yugi cradled his father's mummified body in his arms and stared at it with such longing. The thief could just laugh at the hurt and pain inside Yugi's eyes. "What a touching reunion."

Yugi looked back at Yami Ryou with eyes of anger. He said in a dark tone, "just wait... right now... I'm going to kick the crap outta you," then walked quickly to his throne to bring the corpse of his father to safety.

"Pharaoh, you're too close to Ryou! You could get killed!" Aknadin warned Yugi, while he was making haste to the throne. He turned to the other priests. "We must protect the Pharaoh!"

"Allow me!" Mahad volunteered.

"Your Ka is too weak! Yugi's my cousin! _I'll_ protect him!" Seth refused as he then chanted another spell. "I summon Battle Ox to attack Diabound!" Battle Ox, which Yugi could recognize as Seto Kaiba's monster, appeared and used its ax to slice Diabound in half. Unfortunately, Battle Ox's arm was grabbed by the tail of Diabound.

"Looks like your movement has been stopped!" Yami Ryou smirked.

"That would be _you_!" Seth smirked as a curtain magician, with the same outfit as Dark Magician, began flying toward Diabound.

"Magician of Illusions uses his special ability, Curses of Illusions!" Mahad declared as Magician of Illusions, who was his Ka monster, twirled its wand and shot a burst of magic at Diabound. A round hexagram surrounded Diabound like Spellbinding Circle did against a monster in Duel Monsters.

"Now, you can't use your Diabound's ability," Seth smirked as Yami Ryou glared in annoyance. Yugi was able to run up the stairs to his throne and let his priests continue their fight. His father was safe from Yami Ryou _for now._


	8. In the Name of the gods

**This one is going to be _extremely_ emotional. Mostly because we are now going to Yugi's thoughts about his father, _not remembering_ who he is besides fragments. I hope you like it. Review please!**

Yugi sat on his calfs, holding the corpse of his dead father. He stared at it for a long while, thinking about what Yami Ryou said. This man was also the creator of the millennium items and the one who declared the attack on a city. Yugi remembered it was a small city found by tomb robbers and consisted millions of criminals that lurked throughout the streets. Despite this, massacring a city is still wrong _beyond_ levels. Innocent people still lived in that city.

Why would Yugi's father do such a thing? From the fragments Yugi remembered, his father was sweet, loving, and wanted only peace and harmony for his country. _Never_ would anyone consider him destroying an entire city. _That was unthinkable!_ So, why did he? Yugi felt so confused and sad at the same time. Confused, because of this news and sad, because he couldn't talk to his father and ask for his side of the story.

There was no doubt that the millennium items were perhaps created by some evil force or spell, Yugi couldn't deny that fact after what he went through and what Pegasus told him. Though, he still pondered and wished his father was here to tell him the truth. Unfortunately, his father was dead, which is why Yugi was Pharaoh and not Prince. There was so much weight on Yugi's shoulders from this day.

Yugi closed his eyes, letting the memories flow of how his father used to hold and love him as his own. They were fragments and Yugi couldn't remember that particular event, but he did remembered the warmth he felt, being held by his own loving father. He would cry over this memory, if not for the fact that he was king and it would make him seem like he was trying to win an Oscar.

_"Oh, King Aknamkanon, for your holy figure to return to the palace like this,"_ Shimon said in grief as he knelt to Yugi's size. "Rest assure Pharaoh, King Aknamkanon will have his revenge when the priests deliver heavy judgment on this one."

_"He's not a king,"_ Yugi almost whispered.

"WHAT?"

_"This miserable corpse that can only walk..."_ Yugi whispered in a dark tone as he stood up with clutched fists and glaring eyes full of rage. "IS MY FATHER!"

"My Ka Guardius shall bury your Diabound!" Aknadin shouted as Yami Ryou chuckled so deviously.

"Let us attack together now!" Seth cried out as all the Ka monsters were all about to attack, then the Spellbinding effect disappeared. "WHAT'S THIS?"

"That's another one of Diabound's effects, it can de-spell one of my enemy's or Ka's effect in an instant!" Yami Bakura explained sinisterly. "You can all just die!" Diabound counterattacked and destroyed all the priests' Ka's. They all cringed in pain from their monsters being destroyed. There seemed to be no way of defeating this magnificent creature.

Just then, Yugi came running forward in front of his priests. He wasn't going to stand to see them get hurt trying to protect him or run from this man. Yugi had defeated Yami Ryou before and he can do it again! There was pure confidence shown in the young Pharaoh's eyes.

"I'll fight him! You all stand down!" Yugi commanded. He glared at Yami Ryou. "I think that will be enough hurting my friends!"

"Pharaoh!" Yugi heard Aknadin object.

"So, his mejesty has decided to come to the front lines?" Yami Ryou mocked. "You will soon find yourself in linen wrappings too."

"They always say save the best for last," Yugi smirked as his millennium puzzle began to glow and he chanted a spell to summon a monster.

"Pharaoh wait!" Mahad cried in fear as a huge giant blue hulk-like monster appeared before Diabound. It was non other than Obelisk the Tormentor. All the priests, slaves, and other people inside the throne room gasped in pure shock.

_"It's..."_ Shada muttered.

"Obelisk!" Seth finished, who was in deep shock. A smirk grew across his face. "Now, _this_ is where it gets interesting."

"Let's see how Diabound does against Obelisk," Yugi smirked. "I'll give you five seconds to run or arrest yourself."

"Then, I will be gone..." Yami Bakura said as Diabound covered its master. _"For now."_ Then, Diabound and Yami Ryou disappeared.

"Send the guards to go search for the thief king!" Yugi ordered as Isis and the holder of the millennium scale Kaim nodded, then left the room. _"I guess my fun is over."_

"You did well, my Pharaoh, but you must not risk yourself to fighting criminals, even if you do hold the three Egyptian Gods!" Shimon instructed.

"I will not stand back while the ones protecting me are getting themselves killed!" Yugi protested, then turned back to his priests. "Also, you left my father's corpse lying in the middle of the battle field! If his body were to be burned by Diabound or your monsters, his spirit will never rest in peace! _You know this!_"

"We apologize, my Pharaoh," Shada said before the priests bowed before their king.

"Mahad, I need you to carry my father's body back to his tomb," Yugi said as Mahad nodded, then got up and carried Aknamkanon's body. He stood in front of Yugi with such meek eyes.

"I am the one to blame for this. My lack of skills have allowed this thief to-"

"There is no need to apologize. You tried your best and that's all I expect out of you. You are human, not an animal. I will not punish you for something out of your control. Just return my father in his resting place and if you need to strengthen the guards, you may do so."

"Yes, my Pharaoh."

"I also want to know about the destruction of Kul Elna!" Yugi said, arms folded and hoping for some answers.

"Yes... well, that city was massacred long ago. There were too many criminals inside the town, so it _had_ to be taken out," Aknadin explained. "Your father agreed to this decision, my Pharaoh. It had to be done."

"Thank you," Yugi said, then sighed. _"You are all dismissed."_

Yugi signaled Seth to talk to him in private. They made their way to the top of the palace roof. He seemed to hold a curious look in his eyes. He walked beside his cousin and made their way outside toward the top of the roof. It was one of the very few places where Yugi could have privacy with himself or him and his comrades. It also was a good view of the whole kingdom outside the palace walls.

Seth and Yugi stood side by side on the edge of the roof.

"I suspect my priests are hiding something from me," Yugi said.

_"Really?"_ Seth smirked, before letting out a sarcastic chuckle.

"I trust your loyalty as both my family and my friend. I need you to keep a close eye on my priests. If there is something they are doing without my consent, tell me. If there are dark secrets they're keeping from me, let me know about them. I have to know what happened during the massacre of Kul Elna and who was responsible for it."

"So, you noticed the _hidden secret_. I might be asking Shimon too, if I were you. He was the previous holder of the millennium key. I don't think your father decreed the attack... at least not _knowingly_."

"I'm glad you think that, Seth. Can you do this for me?"

"I will, but only if you let me try a little _test run_."

"Test run?"

"If we're going to find out what your priests are hiding from you, we need a way to _convince_ their trust to me. I will start by _misusing my powers_. Due to protecting the kingdom, I will have guards with me to hunt for a powerful Ka from one of the locals, making you think I'm just _searching for Ryou_."

"That's insane, Seth!" Yugi glared disapprovingly. "Doing this would mean distrust toward the public!"

"Then, take the blame to me. Either way, I will get my information and I won't be harming anyone in the process. I'll just be... _fueling up the fire _from one of our priests. He will then be more open to me, since I also did something _dark_."

"You're future king with a reputation."

"Screw the reputation, I have royal blood and you have a mystery to solve. You rather take my offer or leave it."

Yugi sighed, thinking over Seth's crazy and moronic plan. On the one hand, Yugi could figure out the real person responsible for this_ Kul Elna mess_ and help Ryou be released out of his evil alter ego's influence. Though, what Seth is doing could harm the citizens, even though it wouldn't be _physically_. He and, whoever is with Seth, will be peeking into other people's minds, their privacy. A person's privacy was like their home that can never be touched or broken in. This would certainly be taking advantage of their power just to find out about the Destruction of Kul Elna. Still... those ghosts of innocent souls were crying from their horrible death from being used to create the millennium items.

Maybe this one task could truly bring out the truth about Kul Elna and how Yugi can fix what his father possibly had done. This maybe the only way.

"Seth..." Yugi said as his cousin stood there with the same posture. "You may go, but I don't want any of the citizens harmed in any way, shape, or form. I don't want you arresting anyone, unless it's Ryou. I'm begging you this once to listen to me!"

"I shall, Yugi. No person shall be harmed or arrested or both. I will do my job in trying to peep into the destruction of Kul Elna and that's it."

"Thank you."

"Anyways, I should be leaving and you should be heading to your bed chamber."

"I will be there soon," Yugi promised as Seth nodded, then left from the roof. The young pharaoh looked up at the night sky filled with a blanket of stars. The moon could be seen ahead that stood slightly bigger than in Domino City. Yugi chuckled to himself how he never noticed the moon slowly spinning farther from the earth little by little as the years passed. He sighed, missing his friends Joey, Hanaski, Tea, Ryan, Duke, and Tristan. He could picture his friends and seeing their happy faces at the dark sky. Yugi smiled, then picturing Atem's face in the sky, _'brother.'_ He took a hold of the trinket around his neck where he was to print his real name. It's been whole day and Yugi had not yet found his true name.


	9. The Invisible Door

**And we cut back to Atem and the others. I don't want to just go by each scene little by little. I want to do a whole main scene, then cut back to Yugi and so on. Anyways, review please!**

Nobody could find Joey anywhere. It seemed as though he _disappeared forever_. Everyone kept looking behind the doors around the general location where Joey disappeared. All there were, behind those doors, were traps. Atem was curtain that Joey had probably made it to Memory World... somewhere. There was no telling where Joey was located at now.

It seemed almost _every_ door held a smiley face in front of it. There was no _true door_ that led to Yugi's real soul room. At this point, everyone was about to give up. There was no way of finding this door and no way of finding Joey.

"This is pointless, we're never gonna find that stupid true door!" Seto complained.

"Did we _ask_ for a complaint from _you_?" Tristan argued.

"We can't give up! I'm sure it has to be around here somewhere," Atem said as everyone sighed at the sometime. _'But where?'_ "Bobosa!"

"Yes?" Bobosa replied.

"You say that one of these doors leads to Yugi's past memories. Once we find it, what will be our role? We can't just stand around and twiddle our thumbs," Atem asked.

"You do have a role here. It is your job to find the name of the Pharaoh."

"Wait, but we already know his name! It's Yugi!" Tristan claimed.

"That is only his _temporary_ name scholars gave to him and placed in his memory when he was sealed. Yugi's true name was wiped clean from his memories," Bobosa explained.

"Let me get this straight, _Yugi_ is not his real name and his real name is somewhere in this stupid maze?"

"Correct!"

"So, why did these _scholars_ you speak of named Yugi... Yugi?"

"Well... it wasn't _Yugi_ specifically. That is only a translation of the name given to him in Ancient Egyptian GAME."

"Which is the meaning of _Yugi_ in Japanese, game!" Atem realized.

"Precisely and it's your job to find the Pharaoh's true name inside the World of Memories. It is somewhere deep in Yugi's memories," Bobosa explained.

"Wait, if Yugi doesn't remember it, how are we supposed to believe it's in his ancient memories? Hate to break it to you, but that would be impossible," Seto pointed out.

"Even if he doesn't remember it, it is still deep in his subconscious."

"Or maybe it's pulled right out of its ass."

"The name of the Pharaoh is the key to unlocking the door to the Underworld. It is the name that will take him back to rest in peace with his family and friends, after he defeats the evil."

"You mean when we find it we'll never see Yugi again?" Tea asked in sadness.

"Yes, didn't the tombkeepers inform you?" Bobosa asked.

"Yes, but... I thought maybe... I don't know."

"YAH!" Hanaski yelped in front of one of the doors unmarked, then quickly closing the door, which showed a monstrous rock-like corpse about to attack him. Sweat was dripping from the young blond boy's face. _"This one's trapped."_ He marked a smiley face on the door.

"Are you okay, Hanaski?" Tea asked in concern as Hanaski nodded.

"Serves you right for charging like that," Tristan teased as Hanaski moaned in complaint.

"Hey, I just noticed something!" Atem said, taking out his iPhone and staring at it. "The time on my cell phone hasn't changed!"

_"Say wha?"_ Tristan asked with cocked eyebrows.

"The second hand on my watch isn't moving," Seto said plainly, looking at the watch on his wrist. "Time has stopped."

"Seriously?" Ryan asked with furrowed eyebrows.

"Looks like it," Atem agreed, still staring at his cell phone.

"Oh crap," Tristan sighed, then began shouting aloud, "YUGI, WE'RE IN YOUR SOUL ROOM! GIVE US A CLUE AND TELL US WHICH ONE IS YOUR REAL DOOR!"

"Shouting won't solve anything. We must solve it on our own," Bobosa said.

Atem sighed, then opened a door with no smiley face on it, figuring that standing around won't solve anything. When opening the door, he gasped and saw a certain _memory_ he remembered. There him and Seto were dueling against each other during Duelist Kingdom. It was on the edge of the castle on the right of the door to the building.

_"Atem, you want the right to duel Pegasus?"_ Seto, who was standing at one side of the edge with, who used to be _Atem_, standing on the other, asked coldly. _"THEN TAKE OUT MY LIFE! You shouldn't waste your time _caring _about people's lives, that's why I don't have them!"_ Atem stared at this flashback in such horror. He noticed a slight black mark on each palm of Seto's hand. _"If that were me, I'd push you off right the edge. I PLAY MONSTER REBORN TO RESERECT THE BLUE-EYES YOU DESTROYED!"_ A head of Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon appeared in between the melting dragon. _"SLIT MY THROAT WITH YOUR CARDS!"_

The other Atem showed a cold expression filled with anger and betrayal. He slapped his hand on his deck to surrender the duel. Atem remembered that day. He felt the anger, hurt, and betrayal that he felt that day as he said coldly, _"game over, you win, Kaiba."_

Atem quickly slammed the door shut, his right hand clutched tightly around the knob and his left fist on the door. His arms were shaking and seemed to be panting with sweat pouring down his face. Seto walked to his friend, standing behind him. Seto nor anyone else saw what Atem just witnessed. They could not feel what Atem was feeling at this moment.

"What did you see?" Seto asked plainly as Atem shot his head at the CEO President with such an angry glare.

Finally, Atem dropped to his knees, then turned his gaze at a random direction. He replied, _"just another trap."_ Hanaski wrote a smiley face on the door he just went through.

"What's wrong, man?" Tristan asked as Atem sighed, then shook his head.

"Just a bad memory... the day when I dueled against Seto during Duelist Kingdom," Atem muttered as Seto rose two eyebrows. He knelt beside Atem as he rose his head and looked into his eyes.

"Co'mon Atem, we better continue to search for your friend's door," Seto said, his hand on Atem's shoulder.

"Right."

Atem got up on his feet, then realized something he never thought of before. He furrowed his eyebrows and looked up above him to the staircases above him. He then began climbing the stairs, climbing higher and higher. His friends began catching up with him, pacing. They were confused about what Atem was thinking. Didn't they already try climbing these stairs and he was skipping all the other doors.

"Atem, what are you doing?" Tea asked with furrowed eyebrows.

"I think I might know where the door is," Atem replied as he began walking quickly up the staircases. He would climb up and down _curtain_ staircases. It seemed, to the friends, that Atem was walking in random directions.

"This is getting nowhere! How do you know we're not just running in circles?" Tristan asked impatiently.

"Just trust me!"

"He knows what he's doing," Seto said as everyone rose two of their eyebrows.

Everyone began to see that they were beginning to climb higher and higher above the floors. They were all getting very tired, wishing there was an elevator. _Where was Atem going?_ Nobody can really answer that or grasp the idea. It seemed that Atem was going in random directions.

Finally, he began taking his marker and marking a dot on each door. That's when he seemed to be curtain, but then not so much. At times, at this point, he would turn back if one staircase led to a dead end. He kept walking and walking up and down the stairs to go higher or lower. Tristan began growing impatient and tired.

"OH MY GOD, SO MANY STAIRS! I'd like to find out who invented the stairs and push him down these stairs just to show how stupid stairs are, then his legs will be broken and he will no longer be able to climb the stairs anymore! It'll be ironic, and then his wife will leave him and go be with the man who invented the elevator, because everyone knows that elevators are much sexier than stairs and- _oh my god we're not even close to being at the top yet._ WHY ARE THERE SO MANY STAIRS?" Tristan complained aloud as Atem took him by the collar and they met eye to eye.

"I will show you with _this_, if you don't shut up!" Atem threatened, putting his fist in front of Tristan's face.

"Does it even matter? It seems like you're taking us nowhere! Where are you taking us? Where is this _door_ if you know where it is? Why do we keep on going up, then down, then turn around a dead end, then going to a different direction while marking each door?" Tristan asked in frustration.

_"Oh man,"_ Atem said as he put Tristan down and scratched his eyebrows. Then, he looked up at his friends. "This is like a maze right?" Everyone nodded. "When playing mazes, what is the object of the game when you play a maze of any kind whether on paper or a cornfield?"

Seto smirked, then replied, "you try to make it from the starting point to the end."

"So, where do you think the end of this maze leads to?"

"YUGI'S SOUL ROOM!" Everyone shouted at the same time.

"Bingo! That is why we keep going into traps. Just like Pharaoh pyramids made for the dead, they're made like a maze where you have a start, finish, and traps. To find the right door, you must go to the very top of the pyramid to find the resting place of the Pharaoh," Atem smirked.

"Someone's been paying attention to World History," Tea teased with a smirk as Atem shot her a glare.

"I still find it boring, but I did do some research on the Ancient Egyptian Pharaohs when trying to find out about Yugi's past," Atem admitted as Tea smirked widely. He shot daggers at the girl. "You make one comment and I will send you straight to hell."

"Fine," Tea replied, rolling her eyes.

Atem kept climbing higher and higher to every staircase, trying to find one that wasn't a dead end. There were staircases, two of them, that were the same height. Atem decided to try each one. He climbed the first one and opened the door at the very end. He screamed, then closed the door quickly with a hot red face and sweat pouring down his face.

"What was _that_?" Tristan asked with widened eyes.

"I forgot the pyramids have a queen's chamber," Atem said, glaring daggers at Tea. _"You're lucky Yugi's never seen you naked or I would kill you right now."_

Tea blushed hot red, curious about what was behind that door. Something told her it had something to do with her. She smiled at the thought of Yugi seeing her as a queen. Atem went up the second staircase and opened the door at the end of that one. A flash of light appeared and there appeared to be the ancient land of Egypt, or what used to be _Egypt_. Everyone gasped in amazement.

Atem began smiling joyfully as he jumped from where he was into that world. Everyone else followed his lead, jumping into Yugi's ancient world. All Atem could think was the excitement and longing in his heart to see Yugi again. To see that childish smile once more. To hear that optimistic voice. _Yugi._


	10. The Ancient Diaha

**I'm gonna do something very similar to what the anime did, but I'm gonna make it slightly different. I think you'll figure it out soon enough. Review please!**

Yugi woke up the next day after the stressful event that happened yesterday. He heard breakfast was to be ready very soon and knew he had to dress himself for the day. Yugi took a deep breath, getting up from his bed with his servants dressing him. It felt different to have other people dressing him and not dress himself. He'd continually watch his own brother change himself and picked up the habit.

Yugi did tie the belt on his own, which brought a slight surprise to the servants. He just smiled childishly, and then gave a nod before they led Yugi outside his room washed him. He could feel his hair being shaved like how Solomon would shave his beard, only it was on his head. It would take Yugi a while to get used to the common baldness in this culture. The servants washed Yugi's head, then placed eyeliner around his eyes. Yugi couldn't help, but show a smirk thinking, _'it's a good thing brother's not here or he'd make these people road kill for putting makeup on him.'_

The servants placed on jewelry on Yugi like arm cuffs, earrings, and neck jewelry before letting him off. He smiled, facing his servants.

"Thank you," Yugi said before his servants bowed to him. One of them, who was a young female with shoulder length black hair stood up.

"Your morning meal has been prepared, my Pharaoh," the servant girl announced.

"Thank you!"

Yugi walked away and made his way to the courtyard. Everyone seemed very generous, even if they only did what they did, because Yugi was king. He felt it would be unfair to not thank them for their generosity, because there is always a chance they could refuse. He wondered if he always felt this way toward the people around him: servants, priests, and possibly peasants. Yugi wished he remembered enough of his memories of this world.

Yugi smiled, looking up at the clear sky before coming to a small low table with some bread and fruit: grapes, apples, and some berries. There were a few cushions to sit on. Yugi was relieved breakfast was something simple and it wasn't like the movies where it's a grand feast. Then again, movies were usually over-the-top, or so Atem claimed. It didn't matter. This meal was enough to fill up Yugi for the day.

The young Pharaoh took a deep breath, then made his way to the table before hearing a small chuckle. He looked behind him before he found himself attacked to the ground by a young blond female with such a childish figure and face.

"BOO!" The young girl cried out while glomping Yugi to the ground, laughing like a small child. _"I scared ya!"_

Yugi laughed, then pushed the girl off before tickling her. She laughed aloud, trying to tickle Yugi back before rolled into Mahad and almost made him trip.

"Hey Mahad!" Yugi greeted.

"Mana, how many times have I told you about rough playing?" Mahad rebuked.

"I wasn't _rough playing_! I was trying to scare Yugi!" Mana denied, while rolling her eyes. Her mind seemed sidetracked as soon as she eyed the jewelry. "Nice bling!" She took one of Yugi's neck jewelry and placed it around her neck. "I've always wanted to wear this!"

"Mana! That's very disrespectful!"

"Co'mon Mahad! Yugi's my best friend! Just because he's king means I have to be all _boring_ like you? We're cool!" Mana said, then took one of Yugi's arm cuffs and placed it on her head. "Look, I have a crown."

Yugi laughed and Mana's childish and immature nature. The young girl seemed to be just as silly and childish as him, like Hanaski and... Serenity. Yugi began realizing Mana was like the spitting image of Serenity and even seemed to show a childish and innocent version of her. Yugi liked this alot and couldn't help, but smile.

"Mana, the young prince is king now, we must treat him with respect," Mahad disapproved as Yugi and Mana gave him a pair of smirks.

_"You said _Prince_!"_ Yugi and Mana said teasingly at the same time while pointing at Mahad, who blushed cherry red.

"Uh... I..."

"Attack Mahad!" Mana cried out before her and Yugi began tickling Mahad and he couldn't hold back from laughing.

"Stop! I'm serious, stop!" Mahad said as the two stopped.

"I think that's enough tickle fights," Yugi said before him and Mana sat on the cushions at the low table. It was as low as a coffee table, which was very neat for the young king. The three decided to place some food on their plates as Seth walked by, sitting next to Yugi.

"I hope I didn't miss the big fun," Seth smirked.

"Besides Mana and I tickle fighting Mahad, not much," Yugi replied with his childish smile.

_"Why am I not surprised?"_ Seth asked sarcastically before eating a grape.

"I heard there was an attack yesterday, what happened?" Mana asked curiously while biting a piece of bread.

"There was a possessed citizen, who once lived in Kul Elna. He robbed my father's tomb and tried to steal the millennium items, but I think there's something bigger he's planning," Yugi explained.

"_That's horrible!_ Mahad _has_ had trouble with his millennium ring for some reason. I can't imagine why."

"I think it's the thief himself. His Ka is very powerful and probably the one causing this chaos."

"Then, we need to power up ourselves, train more!" Seth said.

"_Power_ isn't always everything, Seth," Mahad disagreed.

"I suppose that's _your_ opinion. I'd like for us to start training today, while the guards searches for Bakura."

"Seth does bring up a good point. We should train and prepare ourselves, though Mahad does also have a point about power as well," Yugi said meekly.

_"Whatever."_

"Hopefully, the thief won't attack your father's tomb again," Mana said hopefully.

"True," Yugi agreed with a childish smile.

"Heads up!" Mana cried out as Yugi shot his head slightly up and the young magician tossed a mulberry in Yugi's mouth. Yugi caught it and he chewed it before giving a thumbs up. Mana giggled. "He's like a little puppy dog. Up!" She tossed a grape and Yugi caught it in his mouth, chewing and swallowing it. Mahad sighed, placing his thumb and index finger on the corners of his forehead.

"Good morning, my Pharaoh! It seems you're having a very happy morning," Shimon greeted.

"I am!" Yugi replied with his childish smile.

"I love this cool looking jewelry!" Mana said, dangling Yugi's neck jewelry around her neck. Mahad sighed, feeling slightly embarrassed by this.

"I see," Shimon chuckled. "Be sure you give it back to the Pharaoh after your morning meal."

"I will! Promise!" Mana said, placing her two front fingers like a peace sign.

"You will also need to practice on your training," Mahad instructed.

"_I know!_ Don't worry about that! I will get to it!" Mana promised, then tossed a date to Yugi, who caught it in his mouth.

Shimon could see the stress on Mahad and said, "while it is wise to have proper manners, especially toward the Pharaoh, it is also healthy find some sort of _stress relief._ The Pharaoh is extremely stressed from yesterday. A morning meal with only friends and family is an excellent time to relief from such stress you hold. You can worry about duties after."

"Yes Shimon," Mahad responded.

"Mahad!" Yugi called out as Mahad faced his friend and saw a grape in his hand. "Catch!" Yugi threw the grape and Mahad caught it in his mouth, chewed, then swallowed before showing a small smile.

* * *

After breakfast, or _the morning meal_, the six priests began their training three against three. Yugi wanted to see how training worked before he started joining in with them. It was Shada, Aknadin, and Seth against Kaim, Mahad, and Isis. The rules were simple, each player may summon only one monster each and can rather summon a monster from the stone slab in the shrine or he's/she's own Ka. The team that defeats all the opponent's monsters wins. For Yugi, it was simple enough to know.

"I summon Duos!" Seth declared, after chanting a spell, as a monster from the shrine appeared as a huge alien-like monster with a strong built, some steel armor, and a huge sword.

"I summon out Zerua!" Shada declared, after chanting a spell, as a huge monster with an eagle head, huge wings, strong arms and legs, and sharp claws.

"Appear Magician of Illusions!" Mahad declared as a spirit appeared from his body, just like Diabound with Ryou. Compared to the other priests, he didn't have to chant a spell to summon this monster.

"Aknadin's team has two monsters: Duos and Zerua," Shimon explained.

"GO MAHAD!" Mana cheered next to Yugi, who was sitting on his throne.

"Mana, how did you get here?" Shimon asked.

"I had been working on my magic," Mana replied with her perky smile as Yugi eyed the two guards outside the training area frozen in place. He almost laughed at the sight.

"You think you can unfreeze them? I'd normally have no problem going around with no guards, but I fear more of anyone stepping in here," Yugi asked as Mana snapped her fingers and made a magical book appear, which looked a lot like the magic book from Magic Formula. She searched and searched for the right spell to unfreeze them.

"Duos attacks Mahad's magician!" Seth declared as Duos began running to Magician of Illusions.

"Have you already forgotten about my monster's ability? I use curse of illusions!" Mahad shouted as Magician of Illusions twirled its wand and shot the curse toward Duos until...

"I choose now to summon my Ka Dark Ushebti!" Aknadin glared, after chanting a spell, as a pharaoh coffin-shaped idol appeared. "I use its ability to switch an opponent's effect on Dark Ushebti when it's first summoned on the opponent's turn!" Curse of Illusions was found on Dark Ushebti instead of Duos.

"Now, I can continue my attack!" Seth smirked.

"I won't let that happen!" Isis declared as she activated her Spirta's ability the rainbow barrier. Spirta shot a rainbow shield in front of itself and Magician of Illusions.

"Mahad's team has very excellent teamwork," Shimon said with such an impressive tone.

"This is so exciting! I _love_ watching Mahad train!" Mana said with such enthusiasm. At this time, the guards already unfroze.

"Zerua uses its ability to despell your rainbow barrier!" Shada declared as Zerua crossed its arm and shot a whirlwind at the rainbow barrier and blew it from the field, leaving Isis a dumbfounded look.

"I use Desert Trapdoor Spider and activate its ability!" Kaim declared, after chanting a spell, as a huge spider appeared on the field and shot web directly at Zerua, trapping it in the spiderweb.

"Lord Shada, thank you for destroying rainbow barrier. Now, let me return the favor," Seth smirked with such a devious look. "Duos attacks Zerua!" Duos slashed its mighty sword across Zerua, much to Seth's opponents' shock. "Duos uses its special ability by doubling its powers for every ally it destroys." Duos began growing stronger before slashing its sword through Dark Ushebti. "I'll destroy Dark Ushebti as well to triple its attack power!" Duos began doubling its power once again. "Now, I can take care of all of you at once!" Duos held its mighty sword with both hands and evaporated all three of the priests' monsters at once. Mahad, Kaim, and Isis cringed in pain, then fell to their knees in defeat.

"That will be enough, Seth. You win," Shimon said.

"Mahad, what kind of monster do you call that thing? If that's what you used to protect the Pharaoh's tomb, its no wonder it's easily robbed," Seth insulted, which was very much like him after his wins. It was his way of roughing up his opponents, so that they might become stronger.

"Lord Seth, I admit that we have lost, but is sacrificing your own allies really _worth_ the win?" Kaim asked rhetorically. What he didn't know was that this _strategy_ is Seth's way of gaining enough trust toward Aknadin, and possibly Shimon, so that he may get some dirt on what happened during the attack of Kul Elna.

"War isn't won by just the number of soldiers. _Strength_ must also be involved as well. Even with hundreds of soldiers, if they are without strength and training, they are nothing," Seth said plainly as Kaim stood with a disagreeing glare. "Talk to me when you become a more worthy opponent."

_"Someone's rude today,"_ Mana whispered to Yugi, who shot her a smirk.

"Seth!" Yugi called out as his cousin turned around and faced him. "A battle strategy that only relies on strength can also reveal foreseen weakness."

_"Is that so?"_ Seth asked with a deep smirk on his face. Yugi could feel the tension of rivalry Atem had with Seto. It seemed that it was between him and his ancient cousin during this timeline, and possibly had been around all their lives. Just like Atem and Seto, Yugi felt him and his cousin Seth shared a deep bond that seem to orbit around their deep rivalry.

"True power doesn't mean hurting your friends. Whether you know it or not, your friends are very much your strength that will be there to repair you when you're damaged. Don't mistaken them for _weakness_."

"If true power means not making a few _sacrifices_ once in a while, then what his power? Maybe I'm being too rude, but I expect actual _instruction_ from a Pharaoh and not a child. How about a Diaha, if you want to prove your point?"

"Seth, you dare-" Shimon rebuked before Yugi cut him off.

"I accept!" Yugi responded.

"OH YEAH!" Mana cheered, jumping up and down.

"Mana, aren't you supposed to be training?" Mahad asked with a disapproved look. He had not noticed Mana or had a chance to talk to her during training.

"I wanted to watch you train!" Mana glared with folded arms. Her smile perked up. "Besides, I wouldn't want to miss _this_!"

Yugi and Seto stood opposite of each other on the Diaha stage. Shimon seemed both amazed and not really that surprised Yugi accepted the challenge. Seth and Yugi had been having their rivalry, which brought them together ever since Yugi still had his side ponytail. Their relationship was very much like Aknadin and the former Pharaoh Aknamkanon. When Pharaoh Aknamkanon first ruled, his brother never held back in teasing, and sometimes talking informally when they were alone. Though, with Yugi, it was slightly worse, since Seth also considered never holding back in being rude and disrespectful. Despite this, Yugi seemed okay.

"Alright, let's do this Seth," Yugi said with a fun-loving face.

"By all means, I'll enjoy seeing the power of the gods," Seth smirked.

"Actually, I was thinking of not summoning them today. One already took alot out of me yesterday and I don't wanna waste my strength."

Seth glared, he hated it when Yugi never used _all_ of his strength against him and defeated him anyways. It was one of the things that annoyed Seth the most. It was like the time when they were 10 years old and playing tag. Yugi would always run from Seth awkwardly like he was barely even trying and even go as far as running backwards. This very much infuriated Seth and he always tried to work hard, exercise, and train to run faster, but he could never catch up with the little twerp.

"You don't _need_ to hold back, Seth," Yugi said with a playful voice before the Diaha began.

Seth chanted a spell and summoned his Duos. Yugi crossed his arms and the spirit of his Ka emerged from his body. Seth glared more ferociously. He _knew_ Yugi was summoning his own Ka from his body, like usual, and knew _exactly_ what it was, Kuriboh. This really annoyed Seth more than playing Tag as kids. Yugi _always_ chose this little fuzzball against Seth and _always_ won, that was the worst part.

"NOT _THIS_ THING!" Seth yelled in pure annoyance as Mana burst out laughing and Mahad tried to cover his mouth with one hand to prevent himself from bursting into laughter.

"What? _That_ little thing?" Kaim responded in a very dumbfounded manner.

"Yep! Seth is _sooooooooooooooooooooo_ dead! The game is over!" Mana laughed, knowing how the result will end.

"We shall see! I'm not going to be mocked by that pathetic thing for a monster!" Seth snapped. "Duos will knock you off!" Duos took its sword and used the handle of it to knock Yugi across the stage to possibly make the monster disappear, which it did for a second before Yugi coughed up something in his hand, making Seth very pale.

_"Big mistake!"_ Yugi smirked, showing red on his hand before millions of Kuribohs appeared all over the field. "You should know Kuriboh's ability to multiply by the number of my blood cells that exit my body by one hit." The Kuribohs surrounded Duos and exploded like mini mines and destroyed Seth's monster.

Mana and Mahad finally burst out laughing at the sight. It was a real joy to see Seth boiling in anger from his loss against his cousin, mostly Kuriboh. Eventually, the other priests laughed as well. This was very thrilling, so to speak. Shimon had to admit, this was very hilarious.

_"I'll destroy you next time,"_ Seth growled in response as Yugi, Mana, and Mahad laughed harder.

"I'm glad I came here," Mana said with her childish smile.

"Now, it's time for _you_ to go back to your training," Mahad smirked as Mana slumped down, dragging herself from the training room.

"That will be enough for today!" Yugi announced to his priests before they all left.

**A/N: One of my anonymous reviewers mentioned about the knowledge of red-blood cells until hundreds of years after Ancient Egypt collapsed. I have to thank him/her for mentioning this. While this is Ancient Egypt this is also a game world. In other words, you can't be very picky about this. For instance, the accuracy of what actually happened during Yugi's day is not correct. That was why Yugi was able to defeat Zorc, because the influence from Atem and his friends changed the history of the game. I did try to make this more accurate to history, since if this was an actual RPG Ancient Egypt game, everyone would try to dress exactly like the priests, pharaoh, and so forth. They'd try to make it historically accurate as possible. Yugi mentioning the multiplying Kuribohs depending on the number of red-blood cells is actually learned from being with Atem, meaning the priests will probably know too. Probably during the time, Yugi thought the Kuribohs multiplied based on how much blood poured out. So, when it comes to historically being accurate, I'd try not to be too picky. I want this to feel like it is Ancient Egypt, while also making note that this is a game too. The red-blood cells thing is one of them.**


	11. A Wizards' Battle

**Okay, now to go onto more serious matters. Yugi still needs to find Yami Ryou and bla bla bla. Will he succeed? Let's find out! Review please!**

Mahad had been granted permission from Yugi to send reinforcements to guard his father's tomb. Mahad knew he couldn't let his friend down again. He felt only _lucky_ that he was given such mercy from the mighty Pharaoh and knew it was because of their loyal friendship and the great kindness he bestowed. This was a very unique gift Yugi had since he was a child. Mahad remembered Yugi as the bright young prince with such childish wonders and kindness. He would still hold so much innocence despite the tragedies and sufferings he faced.

Mana had seemed to pick up some of these childish gimmicks from Yugi and, in one sense, Mahad was glad for that, but, in another sense, he feared this would lead to future irresponsibilities. Yugi seemed to know how to balance responsibility and being a child once in a while. Mahad knew in time Mana would learn that as well. She was still young and willing to learn with all her heart and passion. This will later prove to be a great advantage for the young sorceress.

Mahad ordered a group of his soldiers to roll in a stoned tablet to the tomb of the former Pharaoh Aknamkanon. This would prove to be his only way to make it up to Yugi for not catching Yami Ryou. Mahad was willing to put an end to this madness with the thief king. There was alot of stress building up at this moment.

Mahad watched the empty stone tablet being moved toward the outside of the palace outside beside the pillars. He made sure his soldiers did what they were told, while also hearing a quiet breathing from the inside of one of the pots lined up beside the pillars. He knew _exactly_ who it was.

"You go on ahead," Mahad ordered his soldiers as they continued to move the tablet. He walked up to the pot with folded arms across his chest. "Come out Mana. You can't hide from me."

Mana's head poked out from the pot like a little five-year-old girl playing Hide-and-Seek. Mana climbed out of the pot to stand in front of her sorcerer teacher.

"You _always_ find me," Mana said with a child-like smile.

"How many times do I have to tell you, Mana? This isn't a play ground," Mahad rebuked, sighing anxiously.

"But I'm _not_ playing, Mahad. You're going to the Valley of the Kings aren't you? I want to come with you!"

"What about your lessons?"

"I'll do that later! You have me practice almost two times a day. I can skip one day of it," Mana said with a shrug as Mahad sighed, then rolled his eyes with a sarcastic smile.

"My goodness, you're _never_ going to become a powerful sorceress like that."

"She can miss one day can't she?" Shimon asked encouragingly. Mahad turned to face the old adviser.

"Shimon?"

"Give the girl a break. Even the Pharaoh used to hide in those pots when he was little and his father would get mad at him for it. In fact, I remember there was another_ little someone_ who loved hiding in those pots to pull pranks on the guards," Shimon reminded with a slight smirk as Mana chuckled and Mahad slightly blushed, knowing _whom_ Shimon was referring to.

"I suppose..."

"One thing I must add. If you strengthen your guard, there is less chance that the thief will strike again," Shimon advised with a serious tone. "I know what you're _trying_ to do and you cannot do it with just your magic, lord Mahad."

"Not just that. I have a great devotion to the Pharaoh. My faith in him cannot and _will not _die," Mahad said from the bottom of his heart. "Ryou is out because of my failure. The Pharaoh had let me live, despite the great sorrow he bares from the disturbance of his father's rest. I will stake my life to carry out my duty for Yugi's sake... well, I must be off." Mahad walked right behind his soldiers after that notion. There was nothing else he could say.

"_Why did you say that?_ That Mahad is too _weak_? Mahad is the most powerful magician I know!" Mana defended with annoyance written on her face.

"Of course I know that! After all, he became a priest due to his incredible skills on the magic arts," Shimon said.

"That's right and he's probably gonna use _all_ of his magic this time."

"What do you mean?"

"Mahad's Ka was connected to his Ba, which you usually find in a very few people. Mahad wanted to put his magic into good use to where it's easily controlled, so he did a ritual five years ago to summon half of his Ka while the rest of it is inside him, so he wouldn't pass out when it was summoned."

"Mahad is _one of the few_?"

"Yeah. Mahad's Ka is more powerful than you think. Only Yugi and I have ever seen it in person and we've _seen_ what he can do. Ryou might not stand a chance," Mana smirked with pure confidence.

"I sure hope you're right."

"I _know_ I am!"

* * *

Inside the Valley of the Kings, inside Aknamkanon's tomb, Mahad waited for Yami Ryou to arrive, so they might have their battle. He would not let this thief slip through his fingers again. He would face this guy head on and make sure his corpse would be buried in this tomb. No matter what happened, Mahad would use all the magic he had to defeat this villain. He would not let this thief slip through his fingers again!

Mahad jumped up as soon as he heard steps from those sandals. _It was time now!_ He stood up and blocked the entrance to the former Pharaoh's tomb. There came Yami Ryou in the flesh with that sinister smirk upon his face and the shadows darkening his complexion. Mahad stood his ground.

"I have been waiting for you, Ryou," Mahad said plainly as Yami Ryou bit off of an onion, chewing it and swallowing it down his throat.

Suddenly, there was a rumbling sound from the entrance to the tomb behind Yami Ryou. It was being sealed up by a huge boulder, much to Yami Ryou's surprise. The tomb robber glared intensely at Mahad with such hatred and annoyance.

"The former king is not even here, is he?" Yami Ryou asked with such a sinister smirk. "Not that I would need his bones."

"I had the former king be buried somewhere else by my orders. This tomb shall be yours, Ryou!" Mahad declared boldly.

"Don't get ahead of yourself. I _knew_ this would be a trap. I have not come here for the dead body of my village's killer. I came here for the millennium item around your neck!"

"It's no use! Even if you were to steal the millennium ring, _this_ will still be our tomb!"

"That's what _you_ think! Why do you think they call me the king of thieves?" Yami Ryou sassed. "Besides that, last time you and your comrades all showed how weak you are! What makes you think you're anymore powerful?"

"Because last time I was holding back. Here, I can unleash my full power without worrying about harming innocent people around me! This millennium item harnesses a dark power. My magic keeps its evil at bay," Mahad explained as the millennium ring began glowing a dark vivid glow. He had learned in the past that the millennium ring absorbs evil from its surroundings, even from whoever wears it. Only the one with very powerful magic can wear it without his or her soul being burned. This was why Mana had to be taught the ways of magic. She was to be the soul heir of wielding the millennium ring. "You could not possibly wear it and stay alive!"

"Then, you underestimate me," Yami Ryou smirked sinisterly as Diabound emerged from the depth of his soul. Mahad also summoned Magician of Illusions from the inside of his soul, only it seemed to have enlarged from last time.

"It seems that your monster has grown."

"That's because last time, much of my magic was used to seal the evil of the millennium ring, but now I'm no longer holding back!" Mahad revealed, showing energies surrounding him with a dark glow.

"We shall see whose monster is more powerful!"

Diabound began sending out its tail snake to attack Magician of Illusions with its deadly fangs. Magician of Illusions dodged the attack while Mahad muttered a spell from his lips. Yami Ryou kept his eyebrows furrowed. Magician of Illusions created a huge powerful dark energy ball from its wand and attacked Diabound before attacking it again with hundreds of attacking blasts of dark magic. Yami Ryou felt the huge impact and spat out a good amount of blood before him and his monster disappeared through the smoke.

Mahad glared and looked everywhere for the thief before he said, "I can see that your a spirit magician. You can double your Ka's attack by chanting a simple spell. Rarely _anyone_ knows how to do that." Mahad glared, keeping his ground. "Unfortunately, I have _my_ way of attacking as well."

Suddenly, Mahad began seeing two axes swinging down from the walls, almost aiming toward him. He knew this was the ax trap set to protect the tomb from tomb robbers. Yami Ryou must've known about that. As a thief, he would know all the traps by heart and know how to use them to his advantage. This was very unfortunate for Mahad. If he moved one inch, he would be chopped into bits, but if he couldn't move, Diabound could strike him.

"Magician of Illusions, attack Ryou!" Mahad commanded.

"I don't think so!" Yami Ryou smirked, then hopped on the swinging ax, hanging on with one arm. "Diabound, kill them!" Mahad felt a huge strike from Diabound like a powerful blow from a bomb. He could feel the burning intense pain from all over his body as he fell on his hands and knees, being careful not to be too close to the swinging axes. Yami Ryou laughed in all of Mahad's suffering with such a psychotic laugh. He jumped to the ground, still laughing, but darkly. "I will kill you all off one by one and take your millennium items!"

"NO! I won't let you do this, Ryou!" Mahad shouted, struggling to get up on his feet.

Mahad had to protect Egypt from this demonic thief, who proved to be a huge threat. He never intended on living through this event. There was only one reason he served his life as a priest.

Many years ago, when Mahad was only ten years old, he lived his life serving the Pharaoh Aknamkanon. Mahad wore no clothes on his body, for he had no money and was hardly educated. Many people of the palace scorned him, mock him, and sometimes threw trash or rocks at him. Some of the other people of the palace would push or hit him and half the guards would whip him, if they believed Mahad did something wrong. He had lived his life like this from age six until 11.

One day, however, Mahad grew very sick and weak. He would work anyways, knowing if he did not, he would be punished brutally. He coughed and not stopping, wanting water. He would usually control it after a few coughs, but this time, he couldn't stop it. He tried to breathe in and out so slowly, but it was impossible and breathing was out of his reach. Mahad became scared, scared that he was going to die from both sickness and blood.

He felt one of the guards approaching and taking out his whip. Mahad knew that whip would come upon him and his death was oh so nearing, but there was a voice that stopped it.

"STOP! CAN'T YOU SEE HE'S NOT WELL?" One voice shouted, one of a young boy his age. He felt the boy take him to his knees and face his head down. "GET THE DOCTOR NOW OR HE'LL DIE! PLEASE!" Mahad only wished to live and if this boy was willing to give his life to save him, he would take it.

Mahad could not stop coughing and his vision was very VERY blurry. He finally felt liquid enter his lips and slip through his throat. Though, it was very nasty. Mahad began coughing again, finding it impossible to stop. Tears were leaking through his eyes, wishing for this to stop. He felt more of the nasty stuff enter his mouth and it seemed to help him control his cough a little better.

After what seemed to take forever, Mahad could breathe and began taking deep DEEP breathes of air before being lied down on a bed. _Wait_ _BED?_ Mahad decided to worry about that logic later. He just wanted to breathe, so he would no longer feel the soaring pain, the taste of blood at the back of his throat. He felt a cold wet cloth on his forehead while opening his eyes.

There, before the young slave boy, were two innocent violet eyes that showed redness from crying so hard and cheeks so tear stained. He was young and seemed to carry such a gentle and caring face. This gentle boy showed a very soft smile filled with such tenderness.

"It's okay, I'm right here. Let me take care of you. You won't be hurt no more," the young boy said.

_"Yur-"_ Mahad said in a hoarse voice before his young nurse boy put his finger on the sick slave's lips.

"You shouldn't speak when you have the croup. I'll get you some food!" the young boy said as he got out a bowl of soup and put it to Mahad's lips. Mahad drank the warm soup that gave a comfort to his throat. He couldn't find the strength to refuse such generosity, such comfort, such compassion. Mahad only felt guilty, not only because the young prince of Egypt, now king since that day, nursed him to health, but that he could never truly repay for what Yugi had done for him that nobody else did.

Yugi was unlike any other king or royal prince. He was a king of compassion and love for those around him. He saw everyone and treated them equally. Yugi would humble himself just for one mere slave to be well from illness. _How could Mahad _truly_ repay his king?_ They were best friends, companions, brothers, and not even that could truly be enough, despite Yugi saying otherwise. Mahad knew this deed Yugi did for him those years ago wasn't just something _anyone_ would do, or be willing; it was one of a rich and well known prince working as a slave to heal one slave boy he did not know back to health. _Why?_ Because Yugi was one who loved everyone and would _care_ for his people.


	12. Tears Cast into the Nile

**Here's the next chapter! I know this was taking a little long, but I was kinda working on Out For Blood at the moment. I'm here now, so here is the chapter you all have been waiting for! Review please!**

Mahad looked up at his enemy, his eyes deeply furrowed. He would not let Yami Ryou win this battle and would give his life for Yugi. For many unknown reasons, the young king humbled himself to nurse Mahad, a simple slave boy, to health. There was nothing he could do in his own power to repay Yugi for his generosity. Nothing.

Mahad stepped forward, letting the ax slice his body in half, his millennium ring flinging off of his neck and the rest of his spirit merging with Magician of Illusions. Yami Ryou laughed very darkly at this irony before realizing what _exactly_ had just happened, noticing Magician of Illusions still flying in midair, only seemingly more powerful than before Mahad was killed off.

"Diabound, destroy Magician of Illusions already!" Yami Ryou cried out as Diabound threw its mighty fist at Magician of Illusions, only for the attack to be dodged and the magician blasting a huge wave of dark magic at the creature with its wand. The blast sent Yami Ryou right off the bridge he was standing on and he fell right into the pit._ "AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"_

* * *

Yugi rose up the next day, feeling the sun hitting his eyes. He yawned and stretched for another bright morning day, and then prepared himself. Though, what he didn't expect was to find _only_ Seth arriving at their morning meal. Yugi began to feel very troubled about this. Something wasn't right and from the look on Seth's face, he knew _something_ happened to Mahad and Mana.

"Where's Mahad and Mana?" Yugi asked.

"I don't know. I asked everyone. They don't know where Mana is, but Shimon has informed that Mahad was planning on fighting off Ryou," Seth replied.

"What could've happened and did anyone check Mana's room?" Yugi asked in such worry.

"I did command some guards to check in her room."

"Good."

"My Pharaoh!" One of the guards cried out, running to the young Pharaoh and his cousin. "I have received word from Mahad's guards! His Ka was sealed in one of the stoned tablets while he was fighting off Ryou in your father's tomb!"

"_WHAT?_ SHOW ME!" Yugi cried out as he and Seth ran, following the guard to the throne room.

There, in the middle of the throne room, was a large stone tablet with what looked to be like the Dark Magician from Duel Monsters. Yugi began feeling his legs tremble as he slowly crept toward the stone slab. His breath was heavy and he felt his body tremble wildly. He could already predict what had happened to Mahad. There was no need to tell Yugi at this point. He knew Mahad's Ka worked differently, since his Ka and Ba merging so close together that sealing it would be taking away Mahad's life. There was no doubt Mahad was dead.

Seth glared with a cold stoned face toward the stone slab of Dark Magician. He felt enraged that Mahad would be so foolish to seal his own Ka on the stone slab just so he could fight Ryou alone. Seth kept telling himself what a fool this priest was. He looked over at the guards with a hard look.

"Did he defeat Ryou? Did Ryou get the millennium ring?" Seth asked.

"We can't be sure, but we watched the tomb. Nobody escaped," One of the guards replied with sureness in his voice.

"The problem is finding out if Ryou is dead or alive! I want you to search the tomb for his corpse! If he's alive, there's a high chance he's stolen the ring!" Seth commanded the guards. "If you find Mahad's corpse too, prepare it for burial!"

"We shouldn't act too fast! If we step in, Ryou might take this chance to escape before we can blink an eye!" Kaim brought out.

"He might have escaped already," Aknadin said. "If he gets his hands on the ring, this will only lead to tragedy."

"How can we even know if he can _wear_ the ring or not?" Seth asked as the two priests turned to his direction. "The only way Ryou would be able to wear the ring without being burned alive is if he harbors a great deal of magic! If we check the tomb and find his corpse or the millennium ring, we will know he's dead! If he could put that ring on, he'd be able to escape the tomb anyways, powering up his stupid Diabound! I say we check the tomb!"

"Wait, can you see anything Lady Isis?" Shimon asked Isis, who closed her eyes to look into the future of her millennium necklace.

"No... I'm afraid I can't," Isis replied.

"_Damn!_ Why didn't you see Mahad's foolish act of rashness ahead of time!" Seth shouted at Isis.

"You know I cannot see into the future of those wielding millennium items," Isis replied to Seth plainly with a hint of sorrow in her eyes. "Lord Seth, we are _all_ grieved about Mahad's sacrifice." Seth glared even deeper, not willing to show the emotional grief he did feel. Despite his and Mahad's differences, Seth almost saw Mahad as family. Isis chanted a spell and summoned out a Ka from the shrine. "I will send my Spirit Spirta to search the Valley of the Kings. Spirta will telepathically show me what she sees."

"Thank you, Isis," Yugi thanked Isis in a sad tone. He turned and faced the stone tablet of Dark Magician again. "Mahad..." He placed his hand on the stone tablet. "I won't let your death be in vain. I promise you that."

"Yugi, if Ryou is still alive, the commoners will be unsafe," Seth mentioned, putting one hand behind his back as some sort of _secret signal_. Aknadin's eyes widened, seeming to be filled with slight fear. Yugi could instantly tell what was about to happen. "Please allow me to send my men into the city to see if I can trap Ryou."

"Seth-" Yugi was about to say until...

"Hey, we can't let you enter!" One of the guards to the throne room said.

_"MAHAD!"_ Mana cried out, filled with tears, trying to fight off the guards. _"LET ME THROUGH, PLEASE! I HAVE TO SEE MAHAD!"_

"Please stand back!" The other guard commanded.

"It's okay, let her through," Seth commanded the guards.

"Yes sir," the guards obeyed as Mana ran right through the guards and in front of the stone tablet of Mahad. She began slowing her legs down, feeling heavy and trembling. Her lips quivered just like Serenity's did after Melvin attacked her.

_"MAHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA__D!"_ Mana screamed, slamming her palms against the stone slab before sliding onto her knees. Hot tears were streaming down her face. _"THIS ISN'T FAIR! HOW COULD YOU DO THIS TO ME, MAHAD? TO ALL OF US!"_

_"Mana shhhhhhhhhhhhhh,"_ Yugi said in a hush voice, embracing Mana into his arms rightly. He felt his own tears trickling down his cheeks. Mana kept sobbing onto Yugi's shoulder, feeling her best friend's embrace. "We're all hurt too, Mana."

_"Couldn't you summon his spirit? Please?"_

"Later Mana. Right now, his spirit is tired from the fight. I promise you we'll see him again. Just keep on training. That would be what Mahad would want you to do, Mana."

_"I'll... I'll become __an amazing magician,"_ Mana promised, wiping her tears while still taking in Yugi's embrace.

"If we are to not let Mahad's sacrifice be in vain, I find it wise to find _the one_ responsible! This will be troubling for the citizens if Ryou is not found. He may not be our _true_ enemy, but the _true enemy_ must be found or more of our priests will parish, including the citizens! Please allow me to send my troops to patrol the city! I'm asking you as your cousin and future king," Seth said with one arm behind his back. Yugi was curtain of the signals they would go by. The one arm behind the back was a sign of Seth plan to play _sneaking around/abusing his power as priest behind the Pharaoh's back_. This also had a double meaning for the other priests, because while for Yugi it meant something, for the priests Seth _suspected_ was involved with Kul Elna this messaged them what he was going to do, unknowing Seth's true motives behind this.

"Very well, I will allow this, but make sure you don't hurt any of my people. Ryou is our only target," Yugi commanded in a serious tone, meaning it for it to also be a message for Seth.

"Yes sir!" Seth replied.

"And I want you to tell me _everything_ when you return!"

"Will do!" Seth replied, pointing his head to Shada. "Lord Shada, will you come with me?"

"Yes sir," Shada replied, nodding his head.

Yugi watched Seth and Shada leave to prepare the troops. He sighed, then looked right at Mana, who's eyes were bloody red and face stained with tears. Yugi could still feel the wetness of his chest from Mana's tears. The blond girl looked up at her friend with such sad eyes and a sorrowful face.

"Do you want to go to your room?" Yugi asked. "I'll have the slaves fetch you some fruit and fresh wine."

"Thank you."

Mana dragged her feet along the floor as Yugi showed a sad smile before facing one of the slaves and ordered, "get Mana and I some fresh-made wine and fruit."

"Yes Pharaoh," the slave boy replied, then walked off to get the food and drinks. Yugi walked over to his room, trying to humor himself about how fruit juice used to be called _fresh wine_. Then again, refrigerators were not invented yet, so the freshness from fruit juice, before turning into wine, only lasted a little while. Atem would probably crack up laughing over that. _Now, Yugi was missing his brother again._


	13. The City

**Here's the next chapter. There's one part of this part I'm leaving out, because of how short the scene is with the gang before Seth arrives. Anyways, review please!**

Atem and his friends landed in the middle of the city, in the midst hundreds of citizens of Kemet. They all dressed in linen clothing: the men wore a man's skirt and no hair or little hair and the women wore a simple linen dress and shoulder length hair. There were some children running or playing around, but were usually with their mothers and the even younger ones were naked. They were all going about their business buying, selling, or walking by.

"Duuuude... you guys are seeing this too, right?" Tristan asked, very surprised about how different Egypt was back in the day. "The streets... the people... wow, they look like the real deal."

"Well, we are in _Ancient Egypt_," Hanaski pointed out.

"Look, there's the palace! Yugi must be in there!" Tea cried out, pointing to Yugi's ancient palace.

"I guess since he's Pharaoh..."

"What are we waiting for? Let's go in there! Where there's a king, there's got to be tons of food!" Tristan cried hungrily, about to run right to the palace until...

"No, we can't!" Bobosa warned the group as they stopped and looked at him with confused glances. "We didn't exist in this world. Nobody can see us!"

"You're kidding right? Of course people can see us!" Tristan said, not wanting to believe that he's a ghost to everyone. He faced a random woman carrying a basket of groceries. "Take this hottie for example._ Hi._" The woman walked right through Tristan as he waved to her. He turned completely pale and began almost jumping from shock.

"Does _that_ answer your question?" Ryan asked sarcastically with a smudgy smirk on his face.

"Guess Fatso wasn't joking," Seto smirked with folded arms. He turned and faced Bobosa. "Though, that still doesn't tell us why we can't just _phase __through the palace_."

"The Pharaoh's strong Will protects the palace. There are a few places we are not allowed to go and the palace is one of them. We must find his name under these conditions. We must not go inside the palace or speak with any of the locals here that we do not know of this time period," Bobosa explained specifically.

"Bullcrap! You're telling me I can't see Yugi!?" Atem snapped with frustration.

"Not yet, at least. Besides that, it's your duty to find the Pharaoh's _true name_, not the Pharaoh himself."

"But we're his best friends, surly we're more important than some damn palace!" Tristan snapped.

"I think you're missing the whole point to this," Seto said bluntly as everyone looked at him with shares of glares. "Think about it, this is a _game_! In every _game_, mystery games, we can search about places, but there are ones we _cannot_ go. If we do, we might be cheating."

"He's right. According to the rules, there are certain places we are not allowed to go to and the palace is one of them," Bobosa explained.

_"Well, this is just fantastic!"_ Atem shouted sarcastically, throwing his arms in the air.

"Hey, there's a problem here!" A villager shouted in the market place. Everyone turned to face the man. "I saw troops coming from the palace! The priests and their armies are patrolling the city!"

"I heard there was a guy named Ryou, the thief king!" Another villager said.

_"Ryou?"_ Atem questioned.

"Ryou! He must be here!" Ryan said happily, then realized something. "Wait, _thief_ king?"

"Survey says Ryou is possessed again," Atem guessed.

"Ryou? He's the one that stolen burial gold from the kings tomb! They say he'll murder hundreds in a blood festival," a woman villager said as everyone in the city began to grow in panic.

"And he's in the _city_?" A random villager asked in panic.

_"He's possessed again,"_ everyone said together at the same time.

"Why does this have to happen every random moment? It's like one moment he's okay, then boom, possessed!" Ryan complained. "I could make a drinking game out of it!"

"I don't know about you, but I think the troops are up to _something_! I saw one of those damn priests judge my friend at the saloon with a millennium item for no f***ing reason! I think that priest is only patrolling to _find a criminal guilty of something_ and take their Ka!" One drunkard complained with folded arms.

"If that's the case, we can get rid of Demon Red Eyes from our town!" Another guy plotted.

"HEY! Leave my brother out of this you sons of bitches!" Joey's voice was heard from amongst the crowd as they all turned to what looked to be like Joey with a linen man's skirt, sandals, and the same blond hair and hairstyle. Atem and his friends all gasped at the same time.

"JOEY!" Serenity cried in pure joy, about to run to him until Atem took her.

"Wait, it might not be the same one you know," Atem said.

"What's it to you, Joseph?" The drunkard glared before pushing Joey to the ground. He quickly got up and shoved the guy against the ground. They both were fighting, punching the other before Joey was pulled up by an older man with black hair and red ruby eyes.

"Joseph, that's enough! _You know _violence is not the answer!" Damon rebuked his brother as Joey wiped the blood from his nose.

"He was talking about turning you in to the guards, saying you were a demon! I'm not going to stand you being insulted!" Joey argued.

"And you think that _fighting_ will make them change their minds?" Damon asked rhetorically as Joey glared at the ground, standing on his feet. "No! Do not give them a reason to persecute you. It is not right. You will become just as bad as they are. Do you want that?"

_"No,"_ Joey replied in defeat.

"Then, do not go to violence, if they do wrong to one of us. They are still our people, even if they don't see _us_ that way."

"I know..." Joey said, then looked at the drunkard. "_Sorry._ Let's go home."

"Agreed."

Damon and Joey walked down the street together. They happen to walk toward Atem and the gang. Joey's eyes widened and was about to say something until...

"Joseph, is there something wrong?" Damon asked.

"_Huh?_ You don't see it?" Joey asked with widened eyes.

"See what?"

"Joey, he can't see us! We're going to find Yugi's name! If you can see us, give us a smile!" Serenity cried out to Joey.

Joey shook his head and gave a soft smile, saying, "_nothing._ Just thought I saw something." He then looked to the gang's direction before walking passed them.

"He saw us!" Serenity cried excitedly. "That must be our Joey!"

"Wait, but why is he living inside Joseph... or whoever his name is?" Tristan asked.

"Joey is reliving his past life. He has an important role in this game different from ours," Bobosa explained.

"I'm kinda jealous... you know? Joey gets to talk to all these people and we can only just stand here twiddling our thumbs with _nothing_ to do, but do ghost stuff or make Joey look crazy," Tristan said.

"You know, I just thought of something. We're like super humans right? We can peek at Yugi's harems anytime we like," Ryan smirked lustfully.

"Sure, like Yugi actually _has_ harems. I can't even see how that's possible when he acts like he's never gotten laid in his life," Atem smirked, rolling his eyes.

"This is _Yugi's_ memories, meaning there aren't any pervs like you!" Tea shouted to the guys.

"Hey, _he's_ the ones that came up with the idea, so don't cha be looking at _me_," Atem glared, pointing to Ryan. Then, he smirked. "Are you jealous of the fact Yugi _could've_ had a harem or a queen in the past?"

"_NO!_ OF COURSE NOT!" Tea blushed cherry red, clutching her fist.

"I think you are. I think you're just _a widdle bit jeawous_," Atem teased, ruffling Tea's hair before Tea slapped Atem's hand away from her head.

"STOP! I AM NOT _JEALOUS_!"

The boys were all laughing at the same time, making Tea even more irritated at them. She was blushing mad and, deep down inside, didn't want to think of the possibility that Yugi probably did have a harem back in his day. Afterall, every king had one in this time period and there was no law against it. Still, it was no big deal; it wasn't like Yugi could love another girl besides Tea. Harems were not even truly _lovers_ anyways. They were just there to produce children for the king, so he'd have a new heir to the throne.

Suddenly, there was a woman running from a mob, who were throwing rocks at her. She wore absolutely no clothing, except a sheet covering her body, held bleach white hair, blue eyes, and white pale skin. Her lips were dry and was panting almost every second through her dry mouth. She used her arms and legs to protect herself from the rocks being thrown at her. If it wasn't for the fact she had little water, she'd burst into tears from the pain and suffering.

"SCRAM YOU PIECE OF SHIT! YOU WON'T BE SWINDLING WATER OUT OF _US_!" An angry villager shouted, throwing more rocks at the poor girl. "Get out of our city!"

"Get the troops over here! This woman is a witch!" Another angry villager cried out.

"Of course she is! She's a pale, blue-eyed demon!" An old rough woman cried angrily.

"If you look in her eyes, she'll curse you," A little kid said to his brother.

_"Please... water... I promise I'll leave,"_ the white-haired woman pleaded in a dry voice. A bucket of water was poured all over her.

"There _happy?_ Now, get out!" Another angry man smirked as everyone shouted and complained. The woman coughed.

"KISARA!" Seto cried out, running to the pale, white-haired woman. He glared angrily at the villagers. "Leave her alone!"

"Wait, _that's_ Kisara?" Atem asked in great shock.

Seto tried to protect Kisara, but the rocks were being thrown right through him. He felt greatly helpless. He turned his hands into fists, angry he couldn't protect this woman, who almost meant _everything_ to him. Seto was about to punch something until he noticed the villagers grew quiet. He looked up and saw a complete reflection of himself, only in leopard skin and a linen man's skirt. It was his past life Priest Seth.

"HOLY SHIT! THERE ARE _TWO_ KAIBA'S!?" Ryan cried out, everyone staring at the two copies of each other in horror.

"Hey, it's the priests!" One of the angry villagers cried out.

_"Thanks for pointing out the obvious,"_ Atem muttered in sarcasm.

Priest Seth walked to Kisara, whom Seto was kneeling beside. Two cold blue eyes looked down at the helpless woman, who could barely sit up on her own. She held bruises and scratch marks all over her legs, arms, and face. Seth, then, looked directly at the angry villagers with the same cold look. He did not look happy from what anyone could tell. What nobody knew was that he was not mad for the reason they were _thinking_.

"What have you scums of the earth done to this girl?" Seth demanded.

"Well... um... you see," one of the angry villagers replied, trying to find a good reason, though Seth didn't want to hear it.

Seth turned to his solders and commanded, "give this woman some water now!"

"Yes sir," one of the soldiers replied and walked to the moving chair to bring out a skin of water.

"You should feel deeply ashamed for throwing rocks at a defenseless woman! I know you scumbags are superstitious, but I didn't think it would be _this_ bad! I should have you stoned for such felony!" Seth shouted coldly to the angry villagers.

"N-No," one angry villager begged.

"We're sorry..." another angry villager apologized fearfully.

"Way da go, Kaiba!" Tristan cheered.

"I'm not doing anything," Seto glared.

"And we don't care."

_"Thank you... so much,"_ Kisara thanked sickly after being given water.

"She's very weak, so be sure you're extra careful," Seth ordered.

Seth knelt down to the woman, making sure she was okay. She was very weak and frail with such rough hands, arms, and legs, but fairly beautiful. Her hair was soft and white, her skin glowed brightly in the sun, her eyes were very bright blue, and she held such a meek look. Seth could not understand why _anyone_ would treat such a person this fragile so hatefully. This girl was like a diamond, despite being a peasant. Seth wished there was some way he could help this woman, more than what he was doing. He considered offering to make the woman his personal concubine or harem. At least she would be treated right and given food and water.

Shada, the priest behind Seth, felt his millennium key beginning to glow. He gasped in pure shock from what he was seeing in this woman. Seth took notice of this and turned to Shada in alarm.

"What is it, Lord Shada?" Seth asked.

"This woman! She holds some sort of _spirit_ that's too strong for me to measure!" Shada replied as Seth's eyes widened and stared at the fragile woman, who already faded asleep. "There's an enormous power deep inside her! The great white dragon!"

"I thought that was just a myth, along with the demon black dragon!"

"I thought so too, but some myths are proven to be fact."

"True," Seth agreed, then looked at the woman again. He turned to the guards. "Take this woman back to the palace! She's too weak to walk around here, probably suffers from starvation and thirst! Give her plenty of food and water!"

"Shall we put her in prison along with the others?" One of the guards asked.

"The _others_?" Atem wondered suspiciously.

"No... give her a room in the palace, so she can get plenty of rest. No one is to speak to the Pharaoh about this! The rest of you guard the city!" Seth commanded his troops. A few of them carried Kisara to the palace while the rest of them guarded the city.

"_No one tell the Pharaoh?_ Okay, I smell a rat!" Atem proclaimed.

"Took the words right out of my mouth," Ryan agreed.

"Maybe we can follow the priests and make a run for it!" Tea said.

"Great idea!" Atem smirked.

The gang followed the priests and the troops, carrying Kisara, back to the palace. They were all trying to run right through the gate, ahead of the troops. Just when they were about to make it through the double doors, they all hit the shield at the same time and fell backwards. They all cried in a yelp just when the double doors shut in front of them.

"F***!" Atem cursed. "What kind of a sick joke is this?"

"That is the strength of the Will of the Pharaoh. According to the rules, we must keep out of the palace. As I said, there are certain places we are not allowed to enter," Bobosa explained again.

"_What?_ But we're his friends! Does this mean he doesn't remember us anymore?" Tea glared angrily.

"Bullshit!" Atem cried out angrily. He glared up at the palace walls. "What? So now that you're _Pharaoh_, you're too good for us? I never thought you'd treat us this way, son of a bitch!"

"Atem, _you know_ it's not like that," Serenity said, feeling pity toward her boyfriend's anxiety.

"I know! I..." Atem replied angrily before dropping on his knees in defeat. _"I know."_ He placed his hand, then his forehead, on the palace wall. _"Yugi... please come back to me."_


	14. Assult on the Palace

**Hey guys! Here's the next chapter of this wonderful story. I'm trying to make this as simple as I can, because there are different things that take place after Atem and his friends make it to this world. Also, I apologize for this being so short. It's just that there are these scenes that last for a few seconds before going to the next one, at least by reading standards. Review please!**

Yugi gasped and looked around the palace. He knew he heard his brother's voice somewhere, but he didn't know where. It sounded like a painful plea. Yugi knew that Atem would feel _needy_ after being separated from him for so long. Yugi felt just as needy for his brother as he was. Just hearing his voice made Yugi feel very anxious.

"Is something wrong, Pharaoh?" Shimon asked worriedly.

"No... it's nothing," Yugi lied, sitting back down on his throne. He wanted so much to see Atem again.

Seth, Shada, and their army arrived into the throne room. Yugi felt some sort of relief that they were finally back. He feared that Seth had probably arrested some people, despite Yugi's orders. Yugi hoped dear in his heart that Seth obeyed him this time. He knew he wasn't going to get the full answer from Seth right now.

Seth and Shada walked up to Yugi and bowed as he stepped off his throne and walked to them.

"We have returned," Seth began. His eyebrows seemed very furrowed and settled. Yugi knew something happened! "We were not able to find Bakura, but we did strengthen our guards. Not even a mouse could get into the city."

"_You_ say that, but I have a bad feeling," Yugi said plainly as Shada's and Aknadin's facial looks showed some sort of nervousness. Aknadin and the other priests were standing in their positions around Yugi. He could see Aknadin seemed to show a little guilt by that statement he just said.

Seth and Shada returned to their normal positions and did their daily routine as priests. Aknadin and Shada seemed to show a guilty conscience. Yugi guessed Shada was trying to protect Seth, since he did _abused his position_ as priest, though Aknadin was a different story. Yugi knew the only way to know what was going on was during his meeting with Seth on the roof that night.

Yugi and Seth stood on the roof of the palace, making sure nobody followed them. Seth decided to spill the beans.

"Something is troubling you. Tell me," Yugi said softly in concern.

"I did my duty by_ taking advantage of my position_. I did look into the souls of the villagers, mostly low class citizens to make it juicy. Lord Shada didn't like the idea, even bluntly said it aloud. Though, I'd be keeping my eye on him, since he never reported me to you," Seth warned as Yugi nodded. "I did, however, had to arrest some of the citizens that did attack me, though I will free them in three days and claim they've been _tried_ and let the priests decide."

"I told you not-"

"What do you want me to do about the citizens attacking me?"

Yugi sighed, saying nothing. He knew his cousin proved a really good point. Still, it pained him to know some of the locals were imprisoned for a scheme of Seth's digging information on the attack on Kul Elna.

"There's more," Seth said as Yugi turned his attention back to his cousin's. "On my patrol, I found a bunch of citizens attacking a helpless woman, who thirst for water. I got her a room of her own in one of the granaries to rest, but I discovered something incredible. She carries a powerful Ka inside her... the white dragon from the rumors! I doubt if she knows how to control it, but I know it's powerful enough to rival the three gods."

Yugi's eyes widened with such amazement and horror. He asked, "you say she's resting in the granary. What do you plan on doing with her?"

"For right now, protecting her. I will let her know about her Ka monster, even gain her permission to take it out. I doubt if she wants to live her life with a powerful beast inside of her, especially seeing how the town mocks her continuously."

"Examine her first, Seth. Taking out her Ka may damage her."

"I will. I told Aknadin about her, but didn't say where she is rooming. Do you believe this to be a bad idea?"

"That will be up to you, Seth. That girl is _your_ responsibility. I order you protect her with your life."

"I will do that."

"Please don't go against my orders. I'm pulling teeth with you!" Yugi glared as Seth nodded.

Suddenly, Seth and Yugi heard a blast from the Shrine of Wedju. They gasped and jumped onto their feet. Seth's eyes widened, Seth could already guess _who_ the attacker was. He turned to Yugi's direction and Yugi could already read what was on Seth's mind.

"I'll check and see what is going on. You take care of the woman!" Yugi commanded as Seth gave a nod and the two ran off the roof.

While Yugi was sending guards to the Shrine of Wedju, Seth ran outside to the granary where the white-haired and blue-eyed woman was sleeping soundlessly at. He slowed down his pace as soon as he made it to the granaries, where prisoners stayed for hard labor. The woman was to rest in this particular granary without doing hard labor. Seth made sure that this woman was treated with proper care, especially since she was sick.

Seth opened the door to the granary and saw the young woman resting on a mattress of hay, her head laying on a rock, and a white sheet over her entire body under her chin. A doctor was by the woman's side, placing a wet cloth on the poor woman's forehead. Seth walked to the doctor's side.

"What's her condition?" Seth asked.

"Still asleep. She will recover with rest. She also needs food when she awakes," the doctor instructed. "This poor woman has been through so much. I've also discovered some old wounds: scars on her back, legs, and arms from server whipping, her virginity stripped from her three times, and old stoning wounds. I would think she was a slave, if you hadn't mentioned that she is no more than a mere commoner. I will not doubt she once was a slave by the amount of damage done to her."

Seth stared at the young woman, bending on his knees and peeked under the sheets to find the woman's ribs rippling down her waist. Not just the ribs, but bruises and scars. Seth quickly placed the sheet back down, taking this sight in. This woman had suffered greatly. He could _guess_ the reason why this woman no longer did slave work. Her dragon had probably killed her recent masters for rape. They had received the punishment they deserved for such horrible acts. This woman deserved better than this.

"Thank you, doctor. You tell my men what they must do to take care of this woman," Seth ordered.

"Yes sir," the doctor replied.

Seth walked out of the granary and faced the two guards guarding the room where the woman was staying. He ordered, "whatever the doctor tells you for taking care of the young woman, do as he says."

"Yes sir!" One of the guards replied.

"And be sure you inform me if she awakens."

"Yes sir!"

Seth walked on his way back to the palace. He was to make sure this woman was protected. He would not let her suffer anymore than she already had. He decided in his mind that as soon as this woman got better, he would make the poor woman his harem and care for her. Seth would be sure this woman was given clothing, food, and a proper room. He did not care for having children or not, he already had his other two harems for that. He just wanted this young woman to no longer suffer again.


	15. Ambush! Assault!

**Here's the next chapter. This is where we get the big showdown between Bakura and Yugi. You're gonna love this XD. It's one of my favorite scenes in Millennium World. Review please!**

Yugi ran as fast as he could from the palace to the Shrine where the attack was made. As soon as he was inside, to his horror, he found Aknadin on the ground with his millennium eye surrounded by blood. He seemed to be in deep shock. Karim leveled up Aknadin while Shada checked him for any sign of death or how bad the injuries were. Yugi wasn't sure what to feel about this.

"What happened?" Yugi asked.

"Ryou broke in and attacked Aknadin, almost stealing his eye; that's what we got from him. He seems to be in shock," Shada replied. "Ryou escaped by the time we got here, so he shouldn't be too far."

"You take Aknadin to a doctor! I'm going after the thief king!" Yugi said as he ran right out of the Shrine before his beloved priests could stop him.

Yugi did not hesitate to run to the front of the palace, into the military room where Yugi ordered his slaves arm him in gold male reaching from his neck to his knees, bronze scale armor over his chest, and a blue headdress. Then, Yugi strapped himself quickly with his arrow bag, his slaves giving him his bow, spear, and shield. Yugi made his way to his chariot, which was already strapped to two horses. He signaled the horses to charge out of the military room and make their way through the gates and out of the palace.

Yami Ryou swiftly burst through the main gate of the palace, killing off the guards with his Diabound, who was camouflaging in the darkness. Yugi was found chasing after Ryou from behind in his chariot. He wasn't going to let the thief king get away this easily. He chanted a spell to summon out Slifer the Sky Dragon, who appeared slithering in the sky above him.

"I won't let you get away, Ryou!" Yugi shouted.

_"WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT!?"_ Yami Ryou asked from afar. The galloping of the horses' hooves running against the dirt road was so loud, Yugi couldn't hear his enemy.

"I WON'T LET YOU GET AWAY!"

_"YOU DON'T GET MY SHIT!?"_

"NEVERMIND!"

Yugi took the whip and hit it on the horses to signal them where to turn, so he could follow Yami Ryou. All the while, Diabound and Slifer the Sky Dragon began their battle. Diabound shot magic blasts at Slifer, hitting it directly and making Yugi feel numbers of enormous pains. He could only guess that Yami Ryou's monster had the ability to steal other monster's abilities, Magician of Illusions to be specific. Yugi kept this in mind.

Diabound began to attack again, this time Slifer dodged all of its attacks. It slithered slightly under Diabound before its second mouth opened and a blast was directed toward Diabound's direction. Diabound began to camouflage itself and disappeared into the darkness. Yami Bakura smirked devilishly in satisfaction.

"Hey now, you'll be in trouble if you forget Diabounds ability!" Yami Ryou mocked Yugi.

_"MY RUBBLE IS REDUNDANT ROUNDS LILLIES!?"_ Yugi asked from afar.

"WHAT!?"

Yugi gasped and looked around, then found blasts from Diabound hitting the ground behind him. He rode as fast as he could away from the attack as Yami Bakura laughed in satisfaction before Diabound finally hit Yugi's chariot. It wobbled, but then landed back on its two wheels as Diabound appeared right next to Yugi, unleashing a blast to attack him with.

Slifer used its own attacking blast from its mouth to prevent the attack from reaching Yugi, while trying to attack Diabound with an attack of its own. Slifer's attack hit Diabound right against the chest, making Yami Ryou yelp in pain, clutching his chest. He was now more angry at Yugi than ever after that attack.

Yami Ryou noticed the villagers running from the monsters attacking each other. He smirked and sought this as an opportunity to distract Yugi for a while. He commanded Diabound to sink a little lower around the citizens' direction, so Yugi would be more resistant to attack with full force. From the look on his face, he not only could see Yami Ryou's plan in this, but knew this would work. Yugi _had_ to protect the people.

"Hello everyone, the Pharaoh has come to greet the streets!" Yami Ryou cried out psychotically.

"Do you know what that man with white hair just said?" One kid, running from Diabound, asked his mother.

"No idea! The horses trampling and the roars of the monsters are way too loud," the mother replied.

"Diabound, attack the city!" Yami Ryou commanded as Diabound began to attack the citizens running in the streets.

Yugi gasped, eyes widened, before commanding Slifer the Sky Dragon to protect the people from the attacks. He wasn't going to let this demon destroy Egypt, not even its people. Slifer was hit like a ton of bricks and Yugi felt every single pain from those attacks. He had to pull out every ounce of strength he had to keep himself conscious after those attacks. He was panting for air.

Diabound finally conjured up enough magic for one huge blast on Slifer the Sky Dragon. This could be enough to destroy Slifer and hit Yugi like a cannonball. He had one chance to attack Diabound before its attack could be made. He commanded Slifer to fire a lightning blast from the ground, where no citizens were found, to airborne itself. Slifer did just that and it jumped right into the air, turning, then began its attack on Diabound before it could finish conjuring up its magic to make the attack.

Diabound was hit right against the waist as Yami Ryou stopped his horse, the same time Yugi did, and felt he was hit right on the stomach. Slifer then used its tail to yank Diabound by the wrist right into the sky. This way, neither of the monsters could attack the people below. Yami Ryou glared with pure annoyance at Yugi, who shot daggers at him.

"Now, your attacks can't reach the city!" Yugi glared.

Slifer took a gulp of breath and blasted a lightning attack directly at Diabound as it disappeared into the night with its camouflaging ability. Yugi gasped in horror. There was no telling where Diabound was located. It could be anywhere.

"You'd better find him before Diabound kills more victims!" Yami Ryou smirked with such threat.

Yugi looked up in the sky, sweat pouring down his face, looking to see if he could find the hiding fiend. A huge blast attacked Slifer from behind, causing a great amount of pain for Yugi. He cried a yelp, before catching himself with the edge of his chariot. He could taste the blood from his mouth as he panted and tried to keep his head up. He noticed Yami Ryou galloping with his horse toward the edge of the city.

Yugi rode after Yami Ryou and watched him use his horse to jump to a slightly higher bolder that could balance his horse up. He smirked down at Yugi as if this was the only way to be taller than him, when it was obvious he was the smallest person in the land.

"Do you get it now? Even the power of the almighty Pharaoh is useless against me! I shall trample all that oppose me and that includes _you_!" Yami Ryou smirked with such confidence. It was only now that Yugi noticed blood from Akndain smeared all over Yami Ryou's right hand. "But... the reason my crave for your blood in my hands are due to the anger and thirst for revenge from the ghosts of Kul Elna! I'm only here to fulfill their wishes! If you give me your millennium puzzle, I might make your death _less_ torturous."

"_Me?_ What about my people! This whole charade seems like a game to you!" Yugi shouted with glaring eyes.

"Glad you noticed, your _highness_," Yami Ryou smirked mockingly.

Yugi glared daggers at Yami Ryou, knowing he couldn't let anymore people die and if he used his bow and arrow, Diabound might attack him directly and he needed to stay conscious. He sighed in defeat and slowly took off the millennium puzzle, attached by a neck rope. Yami Ryou's eyes widened with anxiety as Yugi held up his millennium puzzle in front of him. He hoped this would be enough to distract Yami Ryou.

_"That's a good king,"_ Yami Ryou mocked with satisfaction before Slifer slithered from behind to make its attack.

Just when Slifer the Sky Dragon was about to finish its attack on Yami Ryou, it stopped. Yugi then noticed a huge hand with sharp claws surrounding him. It was Diabound's hand, it's claws close to touching his face! Diabound threatened to kill Yugi on the spot of Slifer made any attacking move on Yami Ryou. Yugi could feel the sweat pouring down his face. He hadn't felt this dangerously close to contact since the Shadow Game with Shadi.

"Looks like you're in a dilemma, Pharaoh!" Yami Ryou smirked with such confidence.

Suddenly, Diabound was attacked by Duos, Seth's monster. Yugi gasped in pure joy when seeing his cousin arrive on horseback with his armor, sword in his hand, and his bow and arrow strapped to his back. His spear was wielded to his warhorse. Seth rode his horse to Yugi's side with Shada, Karim, and the other soldiers galloping behind on horseback. Two other Ka monsters appeared, including ones summoned by the other soldiers from their bodies.

"Did I miss the fun yet?" Seth asked with such a confident smirk. Yugi couldn't help, but chuckle at his cousin's enthusiasm.

"Pharaoh, are you alright?" Karim asked in concern.

"A few scratches, but I'm good," Yugi assured.

_"Shit!"_ Yami Ryou responded as Diabound disappeared into the darkness, hiding him as well. Nobody knew where Yami Ryou was at!

"It's going to camouflage itself to make another attack!" Yugi warned his men.

"This must've been how he escaped the first time!" Shada realized.

_"No duh, Sherlock,"_ Seth said sarcastically rolling his eyes.

"Wait... Sherlock Homes didn't become a novel for another 2000 years," Yugi said as everyone gave each other glances.

"We need to focus!" Karim snapped.

"Right. We need to protect the people! We can't let him go on his killing spree!" Yugi commanded.

"We mustn't fear him! Duos, attack the sky!" Seth commanded his Ka. All the other Ka's made their attack at the sky as well.

Just then, Shada's monster Zerua was attacked and destroyed as Shada cringed in pain, grabbing a hold of his chest. Yami Ryou laughed mockingly, enjoying the fear he was unleashing on the priests and Yugi. He showed a demonic smirk with such darkness in his eyes, even though nobody could see him.

"As long as there is darkness, the city is my _ultimate_ battlefield! I'll paint the Nile red from the blood of your priests and citizens of this pathetic city!" Yami Ryou threatened as everyone glared at his direction, following his voice, with pure anger.

"I swear, Ryou, if not the Pharaoh, _I_ will kill you!" Seth promised.


	16. Shadows Fall

**This is the exciting and intense part of the Bakura VS Yugi. I loved this part in Yu-Gi-Oh, better in the manga, because it wasn't as confusing. I think you'll like this part as much as I did. ****Review please!**

The priests shot daggers at Yami Ryou's direction, where his voice was last heard. Shada was still slightly weak from the attack on his Ka and Yugi was in bad shape. He was filled with sweat, extremely tired, and hurt. There were bruises shown on his body from the attack on Slifer the Sky Dragon, who was really weak by this point. Seth was worried his cousin was going to pass out at any moment and now wasn't a good time for anyone to be passing out. They would be an easy target.

"I want all of you to evacuate the city! We'll take care of the thief king!" Seth commanded the army behind the priests.

"Yes sir!" One of the guards obeyed as the guards left on their horses to evacuate the city.

"Open the palace up for refugees!"

"Lord Seth, your Duos has wounded Diabound deeply. It shouldn't be as powerful as before," Karim informed Seth as he nodded in response. "We should be able to determine its position when it attacks without having to worry about it conjuring up an attack." Seth showed a slight smirk. "I'll use my Ka as a decoy. When that ugly thing shows itself, attack!"

Yugi and Seth looked back at Karim with a share of glances, then Seth replied, "very well. I can hit Diabound with Duos' sword to mark its position."

"I know this is supposed to be _somewhat_ significant, but you do know if Ryou, who was right in front of us not to long ago before he disappeared, overheard this plan, we're screwed right?" Yugi asked as everyone stood quiet, so quiet he swore he heard crickets chirping.

"Shada, protect the Pharaoh!" Seth told Shada before him and Karim took off on their horses toward the cliff far from the city.

Yugi felt weak, tired, and hurt, but also responsible for the safety of his people. He looked out to see the citizens being guided behind the palace walls where they were safe and sound. He knew he couldn't just stand here and watch Yami Ryou succeed in destroying Egypt. That was not an option no matter how weak or hurt Yugi felt at this point. He was determined to fight Yami Ryou and protect his country.

"Co'mon Shada, we need to catch up with the others!" Yugi told his fellow priest.

"Pharaoh, you look unwell! Diabound has injured Slifer very servilely! Not only that, but if you continue to fight, your life will be in grave danger!" Shada denied as Yugi turned to his direction with two furrowed eyebrows, mostly because he was tired. "_Please_ take Slifer and return to the palace! You leave this thief to us!"

"I know you mean well Shada, but as Pharaoh, it's my duty to protect these people. I'll fight until my heart stops beating!" Yugi refused humbly as Slifer the Sky Dragon began following the other Ka's to locate Yami Ryou's Diabound. He could feel Slifer was weak and badly hurt from Diabound's onslaught. The pain was so bad, Yugi could feel it all over his body and had to clutch onto the edge of the chariot to keep himself up. The only thing that kept him from passing out was the screams and terrors of the citizens behind him being guided to the palace.

"My Pharaoh... to the people, the Pharaoh is the living _embodiment_ of a god! He is like Ra, the god of the sun, who shines with light and hope! Your _existence_ shines light over the shadows of this world!"

"I'm not a god! I'm not the _embodiment_ of one or do I _shine with light and hope over the shadows of this world_!" Yugi corrected Shada bluntly. "But I am not so human as to cower over _anyone_, who threaten my country! My father didn't! Now, follow me!"

Yugi signaled his horses to gallop toward his priests, Shada following him as well. Slifer the Sky Dragon began rising up in the sky and using its body to cover the Ka's. Seth gasped, looking behind him and seeing Yugi catching up to him and Karim with Shada following the young Pharaoh. Seth was cursing himself for having a cousin, who cared less for his well-being. It was plain obvious Yugi was badly hurt.

"You are mad!" Seth rebuked Yugi.

"Guess it runs in the family," Yugi slightly teased with a sleepish smile.

Suddenly, a huge wave blast attacked Slifer the Sky Dragon from the right, blasting every inch of it into smoke. Yugi felt a huge enormous burning pain all over his body. He screamed before coughing up a gush of blood over the side of his chariot. He painted, beginning to see shapes on the ground.

"YUGI!" Seth screamed in deep concern, relieved Yugi was still alive, since he was still standing and not yet passed out.

"Its hiding place is over there!" Karim pointed to the direction of the blast on Slifer.

"Duos, attack Diabound!" Seth commanded Duos as it took its mighty sword and pierced the area of the monster right through. Yami Ryou cringed in pain, his hand over his chest, as the monster attacked appeared in full shape as a huge eyeball monster. All the priests and Yugi gasped in horror. _All this planning for nothing!_ Yugi wondered to himself if Yami Ryou knew about the priests' plan, because he was a smart thief or overheard their plans as they were being spoken aloud. Either one would not be surprising.

Yami Ryou appeared over to the right, next to the cliff. He smirked devilishly and said, "did you fools forget that I can use the Ring to summon out _other_ monsters from your stupid Shrine? As long as there's darkness, you can't defeat Diabound!"

"What now?" Karim asked with almost hopelessness written on his face.

Yugi was weak and hurt. There didn't seem to be any _way_ to defeat Diabound unless... Winged Dragon of Ra! Then, Yugi remembered that he did not have enough Ba to summon it out. Everything seemed hopeless and there was nothing he could do to defeat this monster. He couldn't think of _anything_... nothing at all... except...

_"YUGI!"_ A faint voice cried out, one that was awfully familiar. Yugi almost shot his head up, his arms trembling. _"YUGI!"_ There it was again..._ it was Atem__!_ Yugi turned around and saw, from a far distance, Atem running up with desperation and anxiety written on his face. Yugi stood frozen stiff in shock, not knowing how to respond.

"Yugi, what is wrong?" Seth asked with a confused look.

"Do you see anything over there?" Yugi asked, pointing to his brother's direction.

"No, I see nothing."

"I must be _really_ hurt. If only I... wait! Excuse me, I'm going to summon out Ra!" Yugi told Seth as his eyebrows furrowed in confusion. Yugi jumped off his chariot with an idea and ran after his brother, not caring if his priests could see Atem or not, he had only one shot at this plan.

"Yugi can see us!" Atem told his other friends, who were far behind him. "YUGI!"

Atem suddenly embraced Yugi in his arms, tears almost coming out. Yugi gathered his brother in his arms, hugging him tightly. Then, Yugi took Atem by the wrist and yanked him along, bringing him to the chariot. Atem looked at Yugi so confused, wondering what he was planning. Yugi turned to face Atem.

_"Take my hand, I need your Ba,"_ Yugi whispered as Atem nodded with a determined look as he took Yugi's hand. Yugi muttered a spell in Ancient Egyptian. The priests stared at Yugi, wondering if he really had _gone crazy_.

Suddenly, a light was shone in the sky and Yugi was no longer tired and hurt. It was as if he exchanged enough Ba from some other being to let him summon out the Wing Dragon of Ra. Everyone gasped, even the villagers on their way to the palace. It was a glorious sight as Ra's light filled the sky and Diabound's figure appear. Yami Ryou stared in utter horror and shock.

"_IMPOSSIBLE!_ YOU'RE TOO WEAK TO SUMMON ANOTHER GOD!" Yami Ryou cried out with glaring and terrified eyes.

"As an old friend would say, _'kiss my ass!'_" Yugi smirked as Atem gave him a thumbs up.

"Perhaps, but Diabound still has Slifer's power!" Yami Ryou smirked confidently as Diabound began attacking with a huge placed from the snake tail's mouth right toward the Winged Dragon of Ra.

"Not so fast!" Seth shouted as Duos' sword began to glow and a giant beam blasted at the attack from Diabound, deflecting it from attacking Ra.

"Thanks Seth! I'll take care of the rest!" Yugi said as Winged Dragon of Ra began covering itself in flames and a huge blast of flames licked all over most of the sky, wrapping Diabound into flames and burning it to smoke.

Yami Ryou cried in dire pain before falling over backwards on his back, off his horse, his eyes wide open, and no breath escaping from his mouth. He seemed to be dead. All of Egypt cried in joy for the thief king was now gone for good. The priests all cheered joyfully.

"I don't know how you did it, but... you did it cos," Seth said with a short smile.

"I didn't do it alone, Seth," Yugi winked as Seth gave out a snort. "I'm serious. I couldn't have done this without you guys and that includes _you_! Seth, you're like my best friend!" Seth rolled his eyes. "And I know, because you keep taking my stuff. _Nice sword._"

_"Whatever,"_ Seth replied with a glare, eyeing the sword on his belt, which belonged to Yugi and never to be given back.

"At least he's not like Joey. He takes _everything_, even the fridge!" Atem smirked with folded arms.

_"Where is he?"_ Yugi whispered.

"He disappeared after opening one of your doors and_ I think_ took the body of his ancient self."

"Hey, you can see us right?" Tristan asked, feeling worried.

"I think it's obvious he can, if he can see Atem," Tea said, rolling her eyes. She smiled at Yugi, who smiled at her back. "I missed you so much, Yugi!"

"Yeah, when we saw you riding down the streets, in a chariot, we hardly recognized you!" Serenity said with her cheerful smile.

Yugi looked toward his priests and noticed they were talking amongst themselves, too busy to even notice if he was doing anything or not. Yugi took this as an opportunity to talk to his friends, who could not be seen by anyone other than himself.

"When I first came here, I didn't know what was going on. I didn't know what my role was here as the Pharaoh of Egypt or the millennium items. As time passed, I began understanding the position I was in and my duty to protect this country... _my_ country," Yugi admitted quietly to Atem and the rest of the gang.

"When we first came here, we couldn't touch or talk to anyone in this world. It is _your_ world of memories after all!" Atem explained as Yugi stared at him awestruck. "Anyways, it's our job to find your true name in this world!"

_"My name..."_

"To us, you'll always be _Yugi_, but 3000 years ago you were called by something else and its our job to find your true name that is hidden in this world," Tea explained.

"And don't worry, you can count on us to find your name!" Tristan promised.

"Thanks," Yugi thanked his friends.

"Who are you talking to?" Seth asked.

"N-Nothing... anyways, what are you planning on doing?" Yugi asked, wanting to talk about something else.

"Say, has anyone seen Ryan?" Atem asked.

"Look!" Serenity cried out, pointing to the cliff where the thief king laid still on the cliff.

Ryan took the body of the thief king in his arms and cradled him. He knew deep in his heart _this_ was Ryou... or once was Ryou. Ryan brushed the white hair from Ryou's face to show the face of pure innocence with a huge scar on his face. Ryan's eyes stared in shock at this dead corpse, not wanting this to be true and wishing this could all be reversed and this innocent boy would be revived. That wish was about to come true.

Darkness began filling the sky and everyone looked up in wonder. _What was going on?_ Ryan looked up, confused as well before hearing the sinister laugh different from the one of Yami Ryou's. There, in the sky, showed what looked to be like some sort of _dark mysterious sorcerer_ with a white face, a gold eye on the right shaped like the millennium eye, long red hair, gold and black armor, and a dark cape. Everyone gasped in some sort of confusion and terror.

_"It's been a long time Pharaoh, though I'm sure you don't remember me,"_ the voice said as Yugi's eyes widened.

"Who are you?" Yugi asked in shock.

_"My name is Zork Necrophades! I rule this world of memory! I am the controller of the Shadows and darkness!"_

"So... you're like the devil or something? I thought his name was Lucifer," Tristan said.

_"NO! I'm not _the devil_!"_

"So, you work under him?"

_"OF COURSE NOT!"_

"Then, you're definetly the devil. Why can't we just call you Lucifer or at least _Satan_? It would certainly make alot of sense!"

_"SHUSH YOU MORTAL FOOLS!"_

"Yep, totally _not_ the devil," Tristan muttered sarcastically.

_"Pharaoh, your meeting with your friends has warped these _memories_! You have even defeated Ryou and it isn't even his time for that brat to die! I let you have your little time with your precious brother, but it ends now!"_ Zork declared before a gust of wind began sweeping the area and the sky turned into a huge vortex in Zork's place.

Time began flowing backwards, out of everyone's utter shock. Yugi and Atem grabbed a hold of each other tightly before they repelled against each other and Atem was yanked and thrown away from Yugi, including the rest of his friends. He reached his hand for his brother, but it was too late and the only thing he could do was scream his name.

_"BROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOTHEEE EEEEE EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEER!"_ Yugi screamed. Atem was gone now and time was running backwards. The Winged Dragon of Ra disappeared into the sky and gone as well, Yami Ryou was back, and Yugi was feeling weak and hurt again.

_"Now that your meddling brother and friends are out of the way, we can get on with our little _battle_ and I shall kill you and all your little friends too! Just you wait, Pharaoh!"_ Zork said before laughing sinisterly before disappearing into the sky.

Yugi knew he couldn't give up, despite this _huge_ disadvantage. He signaled his horses to pace toward Yami Ryou to fight him face to face no matter what the cost. He could hear his cousin screaming his name, but he didn't care. Yugi would fight for his country until his life was gone. He noticed Shada catching up to him.

Yugi got out his bow and arrow, aiming for Yami Ryou, then shooting. He got up his shield to protect himself from the oncoming arrow before chuckling darkly. He rode over toward the young Pharaoh with such smirky confidence.

"It seems like you're not afraid of death, since you're running toward your tomb!" Yami Ryou smirked cockily.

Yugi took his spear and began to attempt to stab it through Yami Ryou's heart, but it was dodged by the shield, as they passed each other. Yugi then said, "Stop hurting innocent people! They have nothing to do with us!"

"To a thief, _anything_ you see is something you can steal, even people's lives!" Yami Ryou smirked before riding his horse toward Yugi and seeming to attempt on attacking him with his sword. Yugi put up his shield to block the attack, but what he wasn't prepared for was Yami Ryou jumping into the chariot.

Yami Ryou used the shield to push Yugi off the chariot and to the ground. Yugi fought, trying to use his shield to knock Yami Ryou off the cliff. Unfortunately, Yami Ryou was on the top and used his knees to squish Yugi's legs and the rest of his body with his own shield. Yugi was rendered helpless and trapped by his own shield. Yami Ryou chuckled sinisterly.

"You think you're so smart, don't cha, Pharaoh?" Yami Ryou asked with a sickly smirk, then grabbed Yugi's jaw and squeezed it.

Yugi couldn't feel any part of his body, it was rather squished or stiff. Before he knew it, he felt his body being pushed across the ground, and at the edge of the cliff. He could see _death_ in Yami Ryou's eyes. Yami Ryou pushed Yugi by his shield with his hands, then took Yugi's legs and flipped the young Pharaoh from the cliff down toward his death, which was the bottom of the ground that was over 20 feet.

"PHARAOH!" Shada screamed.

_"YUGI NO!"_ Seth screamed in agony as he watched his cousin fall from the high cliff.

The priests galloped to the side of the cliff and watched Yugi fall and scream to his death, but not before _something_ caught him with its two hands. IT WAS A DRAGON! Everyone gasped, even Yami Ryou, as he saw the rage of the Red-Eyes Black Dragon from the rumors.

_"I THOUGHT THAT WAS JUST A MYTH!"_ Yami Ryou almost screamed.

"You thought wrong, asshole!" A certain familiar voice screamed out. It was Joey in a white man's skirt and riding on top of the dragon. He was never more angry than he was now. "While your little _Diabound_ character was pissing off the Pharaoh, your horse happened to push a cart with barrels of beer right toward us both knocking my _friend_ out like a light and skinning my elbow!" A smirk came across Joey's face. "Red-Eyes don't like it when you hurt _me_!"

Red-Eyes Black Dragon roared a terrifying and ground breaking roar, then shot tons of fire right at Diabound, which began revealing itself and burned into flames. Yami Ryou screamed in agony, spitting tones of blood, then smirked sinisterly as Diabound recovered from the attack.

"You think that dumbass dragon is enough to defeat Diabound?" Yami Ryou smirked

"Not really, but it is enough for Damon to get his revenge!" Joey smirked as Yami Ryou glared, then was struck in the arm by an arrow.

"_YAH!_ WHAT THE HELL!?" Yami Ryou screamed out, then noticing a bow and arrow that was hidden behind the dragon in Joey's hands.

"What, didn't know a low life scum could hunt or are you just _stupid_?"

"DIABOUND, DESTROY THIS BOY!"

Diabound began shooting blasts at Red-Eyes Black Dragon as he began dodging the attacks, holding an unconscious Yugi. Joey knew that Diabound was too powerful for Damon to take on _alone_. Even Damon didn't need Joey to know that. He began avoiding the attacks and flying through the nightly sky before using his dark skin to camouflage itself inside a cave. Diabound flew passed the dragon as Joey panted, sliding off the dragon, then taking Yugi out of the dragon's hands, lying him down.

Yugi was no doubt wounded very badly. At least he was breathing!

"The palace is too far away for us to get him to the palace without that thing detecting us! You distract that thing and I'll take the Pharaoh to our place for a while. The guards already took your body to the palace to see a doctor, so if the worst comes, just return to your body. I'll be okay," Joey said as the dragon nodded, then flew off to distract Diabound.

Joey carried Yugi over his back and began making a run for his home. It was in the countryside, so it was probably safer for Yugi to stay at. Hopefully, he would be provided with the supplies he needs to make sure Yugi gets better. This was what Joey was going for.


	17. Ripples in the Shadows

**Here is the next chapter. I want to bring out Seto and Kisara before going back to Yugi with Damon and Joey. I hope you like this one. I'm trying to organize this story like to where it's slightly different from the manga version. The reason is because I don't want a ****_love at first sight _****romance with Seth and Kisara like in the manga. Review please!**

The next day after the Red-Eyes Black Dragon took the Pharaoh, hiding him, Seth sent a search party to search for his lost cousin. He was beginning to feel frustrated and impatient. He wanted his cousin back in the palace safe and sound. He knew Yugi was going to need medical attention and pronto. Seth was hoping Yugi was being cared for by the black dragon and its rider. It would be hard to find the mysterious Red-Eyes Black Dragon, let alone _who_ carried its soul.

Nobody couldn't catch a glimpse of the _mysterious_ dragon rider. The dragon and darkness of the night covered the rider of the Red-Eyes Black Dragon. The carrier of the dragon could be anyone at this point. There was no narrowing down anyone, unless it was someone _recently_ going into the palace as a refugee. Though, there had not been _recent refugees_ since the Pharaoh's disappearance and there was nobody in the city.

Seth had to stay in his bedroom, due to his lack of control over his emotions at this point. First, Mahad is gone and now his closest friend Seth had ever come to. In fact, Yugi was _family_! Seth had to keep his emotions in tact or he was going to lose his mind. He took a deep breath before hearing footsteps.

"Lord Seth!" Aknadin's voice cried out.

"Yes!" Seth replied, throwing the curtain door open and walking through like he was in a bad mood.

"The guards are not able to find the Pharaoh! Lord Shada's search party looked high and low-"

"I don't care if they have to drain the Nile! I'm going to find my cousin if it's the last thing I do!" Seth shouted with frustration. "_Yugi is still alive!_ That dragon appeared to protect him, so there is no doubt his heart still beats. I'm not losing faith until I find his body dead!"

"It will take more than _faith_ to protect this country."

"Do I look like I _care_ about a damn word you say?"

"Lord Seth!" Isis cried out with a glaring and rebuking face. "I know you are filled with sorrow, but that is no reason to have an episode!"

_"I-I know,"_ Seth said, then sighed. He eyed at Aknadin. "I'm sorry, Lord Aknadin, but unless my cousin's body is found, I will not give up. I'm sure you would feel the same, if it was someone you cared for deeply the most."

"I suppose _I would_," Aknadin whispered darkly.

Seth ignored Aknadin's dark tone in his words, not really caring what he was planning. He just wanted his cousin home and safe. Though, there were other things to worry about like the woman with the white dragon. Seth decided to check on the woman with the white dragon. He needed _something_ to keep his mind off of things for the moment.

Seth saddled on his horse and rode on his way to the granary where the peasant woman was supposed to be cared for. He made sure that _nobody_ followed him. He was held responsible for the woman's safety and did not want any harm to come to her, due to her powerful dragon any of the priests would probably want. There was already enough pressure on Seth as it was.

Seth arrived at the granary, where the woman was located, and walked up to one of the guards guarding the place.

"How is she?" Seth asked.

"She is awake, sir," the guard replied. "Woke up about a few hours ago. I gave her some food. She is eating right now."

"Thank you. I will speak with the woman now," Seth requested.

"Of course, my lord!" the guard replied, giving Seth room to enter into the granary where the woman stayed.

Seth entered inside and saw the woman with long white hair and blue eyes sitting on the hay where she slept. She held a piece of bread in her hand and was in a linen dress, which Seth had ordered for the guards to have the woman wear. She looked up at Seth, swallowing her food and showing very meek and humble eyes. Seth walked to the woman with a sincere smile as she bowed to Seth's feet, covering her face.

"I have no way of thanking you for saving my life. You have my eternal gratitude," the woman said humbly.

"What is you name?" Seth asked, kneeling down and lifting the woman's chin.

"Kisara, my lord."

"Kisara... a very beautiful name. I am sorry for how the low lives on the streets treat you. The Pharaoh may control his country, but not always his people."

"It is fine. I was pestering him for water and that is not right," Kisara said humbly, gazing off the corner of her eyes. "I should not be striving for more than what I have."

"It is not wrong to _ask_ someone for food or water. Nobody should give you stones when you ask for water. What they did was wrong. Do you understand?"

"Yes, my lord."

"Not only that, but you have every reason to be praised for a very powerful and glorious Ka inside you."

_"What?"_ Kisara asked with widened eyes.

"Lord Shada had picked up a mighty white dragon inside your soul. It is like the monsters we priests summon to protect the city. Were you not aware of this?" Seth asked as Kisara shook her head in fear.

"I thought it was... you mean what happened to..." Kisara replied in quiet shock, then covered her face and cried in tears. Seth did not expect this response. _"I'm a monster!"_

"I did not mean that!"

"No, I mean if what you are saying is true, it is because of this dragon... I was a slave, trying to make money for my family. One day I woke up and my entire master's home was destroyed; nobody survived! I-I thought the white dragon story was just a rumor, but..." Kisara admitted with huge grief, crying and sobbing with such fearful tears. Seth held the woman in his arms. Kisara looked up with a face with tears, which Seth did not hold back wiping from her face.

"What do you remember?" Seth asked, wanting to make sense of this.

"Well... my master was in a bad mood one day. He ordered me to... do something for him, but I didn't want to. He beat me and I fought back. My master punished me and slammed me against the wall. I woke up and everything was destroyed," Kisara explained. Seth could already tell by the look in her eyes that her master probably tried to rape her.

"You must be one of the few, whose Ba and Ka exists together as one. Lord Mahad was the same. He used a spell to split his Ka into two different forms, that way he could control the monster, despite not being as powerful. I am sure there is a way to control the dragon."

"Can't you use your rod to pull out my dragon?"

"Yours cannot without losing your life," Seth explained as Kisara stared down at the hay on the ground as if debating about _something_ in her mind. "Though, you can _learn_ to control your dragon. Compared to many of the others with Ka monsters, you are _not_ a criminal. The black dragon, also from rumors; I saw him save the Pharaoh. Perhaps your dragon has your personality. More than likely the attack was out of defense, meaning to protect you, and did not mean to cause harm. You can learn to control your dragon and make sure it does not harm anyone again."

"I will try, but if my dragon is causing any harm, you may take my life. I would rather die than cause anymore harm."

"_That_ won't be necessary," Seth promised, kissing Kisara's hand. Kisara smiled softly. "I will be having you stay with the other prisoners here for your safety. You must stay and work with them for now. I will give you the choice of learning to control your dragon, but that will require alot of courage. You will _see_ _things_ you wish you didn't see, but it is to find out what _triggers_ your soul monster. No matter what you see, _I will_ protect you from any harm or danger as long as you stay with me."

"Whatever it takes, I will cooperate, my lord. Afterall, I owe you my life."

"Then, I have one request."

_"Anything!"_

"Would you like to dine in the palace with me? I am sure it must be better than the food _here_."

"_This is too much!_ Of course I shall go!" Kisara agreed with a joyful smile as Seth showed one of his own and gave a nod. He took the girl by the hand and led her to his horse.

Seth helped Kisara to his horse and rode off toward the palace. Everyone stared with shocking looks at Kisara, who was very different than any other Egyptian. They mostly stared at her white skin and blue eyes. Kisara responded by being shy and, most of the time, hiding herself. She was given a proper bath to prepare for morning meal. This was more than she's ever had in her entire life. _Is this what palace living is like?_

Kisara's hair was brushed and braided with beads and gold. Kisara wore a few gold jewelry, but only bracelets and neck jewelry. Her linen dress was still kept, since Seth wasn't planning on a _fancy dinner_ or anything, but just wanted company with him at the table. Kisara seemed to enjoy herself and the food prepared for her, including the wine, which she had never tasted before in her life.

"I want to thank you for all of this. I never really asked for this," Kisara said. Her eyes gazed away. "In fact, I don't feel like I deserve any of this... to sit and dine with one of the Pharaoh's loyal priests."

"Why not? You hold more honor than any person I know. Besides that, it helps to have someone with me through my time of distress. Last night, the Pharaoh was fighting against the thief king and was taken and saved by the red-eyed dragon. I sent a search party to look for him, but they have not yet found him. To top it all off, I had just lost one of my friends," Seth said.

"I am terribly sorry. I know what it's like to lose a loved one."

"Mahad was a good friend and a powerful magician. He gave his life for the Pharaoh and now his Ka is sealed in the stoned tablet. Though, we must move on and right now, searching for the Pharaoh is my main goal."

"You have a strong heart."

"True, that may be, but I do not hold such strong kindness. Not like how Yugi does," Seth muttered quietly.

_"Yugi?"_

"Sorry. I am one of the few that calls the Pharaoh by that name. We grew up together since we were babies, so he's more to me than _a king_."

"Oh, I had no idea. I've heard that priests are taught to be priests as small children and pass their legacy down from father to son, but..."

"You are right and we do have _separate houses_, though I'm very _near_ the Pharaoh. We're keen."

"Ah, that makes sense," Kisara realized, giggling. "You're in line to the throne, I assume?"

"I am. Though, I'm not ready to sit on it yet."

"I am sure the Pharaoh will be just fine, my lord," Kisara said in a comforting voice.

"Thank you, Kisara."

One of the slaves arrived at the table and faced Seth announcing, "I'm afraid Mana does not wish to arrive. She is fasting at the moment."

"I will check with her after lunch. Give her a little wine to ease her stomach," Seth ordered.

"Yes, my lord."

The slave left and Seth sighed. He knew Mana was not taking the news of Yugi's missing whereabouts all too well. Ever since his disappearance, Mana had been so depressed she refused to eat. Seth couldn't blame her for feeling this way, but he didn't have time to break into depression. Without a Pharaoh, _he_ had to take over for his cousin. That included finding out more about Kul Elna.

"I have a question. I don't know if you might help me, but I know Yugi and I have been trying to investigate this," Seth said as Kisara's eyes lit up. _"Do you know anything about Kul Elna?"_


	18. The Pharaoh's Return

**Here's the next chapter of this story. This part isn't in the manga, but I am doing a different version of the cliff fall. I did think the version in the manga and anime was just stupid and didn't make any ounce of sense. So, since the Red-Eyes Black Dragon saved Yugi, this will be done differently. **

**By the way, I was trying to find any kind of research for who knows how long to learn about how Ancient Egyptians showed physical affections of greetings or_ displaying friendship_. I couldn't find anything, but I did find out how modern day Egypt shows physical affection. Though, it isn't displayed with Egyptian couples, due to their Islam religion, displaying affection toward a friend or family is widely accepted, including hand-holding, kissing on each cheek, among other things. I do believe this was dated back in Ancient history, since the Bible talks about kissing as a sign of greeting and not displaying love. I will show some of this, since it is _in_ _Egypt_, so don't get any homo ideas. In fact, even in Japan (despite its lack of physical touching toward each other, mostly toward their spouse) men or women of the same sex holding hands or hugging is widely accepted as displaying friendship, though they usually have to be... _really close friends..._ (smirks and remembers the famous puzzleshipping scenes of Yugi and Yami holding hands) I just proved puzzleshipping isn't cannon. Review please!**

The citizens eventually were allowed to return to their homes to repair the damages done to the city. Damon ran to the bottom of the cliff along the Nile. He spotted Joey inside the cave by the river tending Yugi's wounds. A sheet was over Yugi's body with a cloth tied around his waist and left leg. Yugi had been out for over a day.

Damon ripped off, and then damped a piece of his skirt, gently cleaning Yugi's face. His eyes were widened in slight amazement. Joey looked over at his brother with blinking eyes.

"What's wrong?" Joey asked.

"It's nothing... he looks so... young. He is only a boy," Damon said.

"He did just become Pharaoh. It's no surprise he's young."

"I suppose."

"I think it's safe for us to return him back to the palace."

"You should be the one to do so. I will be at home," Damon said plainly, getting up on his feet.

"Why?"

"Joseph, if nobody in the city accepts me here, why should a Pharaoh? I am a monster under everyone."

"That's not true, Damon! You saved the Pharaoh! You helped him fight his enemy! At this point it does not matter what color your eyes are!" Joey argued as Damon glared at the ground, disagreeing inside his mind. He didn't want to argue with his brother and decided to take off for his leave.

Suddenly, a moan was heard. Damon froze in fear, eying Yugi's direction. Yugi twitched his mouth and nose as Damon was about to take off to not be seen by the almighty Pharaoh of Egypt, the living embodiment of the living god. Though, before he could make a step, Joey grabbed Damon's arm and shook his head. Damon had to reluctantly stay. Joey wasn't going to let his brother run away from his problems.

Yugi reached his hand to his forehead as Joey pulled Damon beside him and helped him sit up. Yugi took some deep breaths, then opened his eyes to find himself inside a cave next to the Nile. He felt sore on his arms, legs, and waist. He noticed his left leg and waist were wrapped in linen cloth. He then looked over to his left and right to find Joey, only more dirty and Egyptian, and another male with coal black hair, darker tanned skin, and red crimson eyes. Yugi could already guess who this _person_ was. He was Joey's soul card he met during the duel between Atem and Joey.

"Easy there, Pharaoh," Damon said.

_"Y-You saved my life,"_ Yugi muttered, then formed a small smile. Damon sighed in relief and showed a thankful smile of his own.

"We should sit you up over here until your strength returns," Joey suggested, him and Damon helping Yugi over to the wall of the cave, so he could sit up on his own. "By the way, my name is Joseph son of Dennu." He pointed to Damon. "This is my brother, Damon son of Dennu."

Yugi nodded, facing Damon and said, _"I thank you Damon son of Dennu. I owe you my life."_

"Thank you, Pharaoh. I apologize for not returning you to the palace, but we feared Diabound might have killed us all on the way," Damon apologized humbly.

"I am glad you didn't. My cousin Prince Seth will take over until my return. You have a very powerful Ka. Judging by your eyes, hair, and skin, I can guess that he is summoned only when you pass out or in a deep sleep."

"That is correct. I can't control my Ka, so my brother has to be its master. He had worked on the dragon until it was somewhat _tamed_."

"I see. One of my recent priests and noble friend, who died a few days ago, held a similar type of Ka that you do where it is only summoned, if asleep. After becoming priest, he was able to create a spell to separate a part of his Ka, but only made the monster weaker."

"You can do that?"

"Yes. You have a very powerful monster and a terrific gift," Yugi said with a smile and wink.

"Thank you, my Pharaoh. I am honored."

"You should eat something before we return you back, _Yu- _Pharaoh," Joey said, almost calling Yugi by his temporary name. He gave Yugi some bread and a few leaves. It wasn't the best meal, but it was enough to fill him.

After the three boys ate, they made their way to the palace. It was hard for Yugi to walk, but he was helped by Joey and Damon. They helped Yugi limp up the cliff on the long and safer route. It did take for almost hours to climb to the top, but they eventually made it. Sometimes Damon had to carry Yugi through difficult passages.

The boys then began walking to the city and met with some guards. Joey ran up to the guards and told them where Yugi was located and needed help. The guards immediately ran to Yugi's aide and didn't haste to return him to the palace. Yugi also ordered for Joey and Damon to be led to the palace as well, since they did _save his life_. The guards obeyed Yugi's orders.

As soon as Yugi arrived to the palace, he was greeted by his fellow priests. Seth was the first to greet his cousin, kissing him on each cheek, then giving each other a brief hug. Yugi then walked to Joey and Damon, who stood side by side holding the other's hand.

"These are the young men that saved my life when I fell off the cliff," Yugi introduced the priests to the two boys. He pointed to Joey. "This is Joseph..." then to Damon. "and Damon son of Dennu."

Seth looked over at Damon with furrowed eyebrows, asking, "are you the holder of the black dragon?"

"Yes, lord Seth," Damon replied, slightly fearful.

"I believe your name was listed as one of the refugees, but you found passed out by the guards. You possess a dragon that has fused your Ba and Ka. There are people like you, but they are very rare," Seth said.

"I can't thank you enough for saving my life, but I would like to give you both a chance to build yourselves up. I understand controlling the red-eyed dragon is difficult. You both can train as soldiers. My priests can teach Damon some sorcery, so he can learn to control his dragon and Joseph can be trained in dragon riding. Of course, it is up to the both of you."

"You really mean this?" Damon asked in shock. Yugi nodded. "I don't understand. Among Egypt, I am a monster... a _demon_."

"Between you and me, you're not the first," Seth smirked as Damon's eyes lit up. "In fact, there is _someone_ I will have you train with I'm also working on as we speak. Will you allow this, Yugi?"

"Of course!" Yugi said, nodding.

"You want to come?" Seth asked Joey.

"You better believe I'm going to come along," Joey said bluntly. Even though this was a different version of Seto Kaiba, that didn't mean he didn't have an eye on this guy. Damon glared at Joey disapprovingly for sounding disrespectful.

Seth smiled, then replied, _"looks like I found myself a new best friend."_

Joey and Damon followed Seth into the palace. They were led to the left of the palace where Diaha training usually took place. It was cleared for Seth to train Kisara personally, though seeing Damon, he decided to go with _other plans_. All everyone in the palace knew was that Seth was _training with_ _someone_, but never were given _whom_. They all assumed it was probably a soldier having private training. They were both right and wrong.

Seth entered into the training room, Damon and Joey behind him, and the boys caught a glance of a fragile young woman. Joey glared, not really liking the situation and stood closer to Damon. Though, there was something strange about this woman. She looked different than most other women in Egypt and not just her white hair and skin. She also held bright blue eyes that were more shoeing compared to Joey's blue eyes.

Kisara sat up and stared longingly at Damon. She slowly walked to him as Seth walked to her side.

"This woman is Kisara. Like you, she also carries a dragon and is shamed by the people of the city to the point of throwing rocks. I thought, before starting either of your training, it would be wise for both of you to be acquainted," Seth said.

"Wait, is she the great white dragon?" Damon asked as Kisara looked at him fearfully.

"Have you... _seen_ it?" Kisara asked.

"I have. You saved my brother and I from slavery. Joseph was so small he does not remember, but I do. We must have had the same master," Damon said as Kisara's eyes widened in great surprise. "I think he was Maget. He owned a huge estate."

"He was my third master before..."

"Thank you."

Kisara only nodded, staring at the floor shyly. Damon could already predict what she was _thinking_. He said, "I had my share of kills too. Mostly to protect Joseph. I was afraid of my black dragon and sorta am now."

"Did you ever control your dragon?" Kisara asked.

"No, but Joseph could. That's why I'm not afraid of my dragon as much... he loves Joseph and will do what he says. Your dragon will do things you don't like, but she will protect your loved ones and do as they command. My brother and I left Maget's house and I began raising my brother alone at the age of nine. We couldn't find any food to eat, let alone shelter. Eventually, my brother and I were next to some rocks, about to die of hunger. When I woke up, I found enormous amounts of food hunted and cooked, ready to eat. Joseph said that a big black dragon had hunted us food from far parts of the lands. We lived that way, we would try to find food any sort of way and try to find any way of rising from being homeless and my dragon would hunt for us. Joseph said the dragon would do as he commanded. He just told my dragon what he wanted and the dragon would give it to him. I think it's the same to those who have a Ka like ours. It will only heed to those whom its master loves and protects."

"It is," Seth said as the two turned to him. "Mahad sealed his Ka inside the stone tablet. Dark Magician is only loyal to Yugi... maybe Mana, but she has not learned to summon a Ka yet. Yugi was Mahad's closest friend, aside from Mana and me."

"If the black dragon will protect Joseph and Dark Magician protect the Pharaoh, what does _the white dragon_ have to protect?" Kisara asked. "I have no one. No family to protect. I was sold into slavery as a young infant, separated from my family. I don't even remember any of them or if I had any brothers or sisters."

"That doesn't mean you have nobody to protect. I am sure there's someone you are willing to protect. You seem to care about everyone you meet. Your dragon perhaps will protect those you might have just met, due to your kind heart," Seth said, but Kisara seemed unsure about herself. Seth pierced his lips, then walked to one end of the Diaha stage. Damon and Joey glanced at the stage. "I'll see if I can figure out how your dragons works."

"Are you sure about this?" Damon asked, with widened eyes.

"I'm sure. I can extract a Ka from its master and I can return it to its owner using my millennium rod. If I am to train you both to control your Ka's, I must figure out how they work."

"Don't cha think it'd be safer to start out with Red-Eyes? I already know how to control it," Joey suggested.

"Actually, I was thinking of extracting _both_ at the same time. The black dragon will do anything you say Joseph and, if the white dragon goes out of control, you have a _backup_."

"Huh... never thought about that."

"I don't know about this," Kisara said. Seth took her by two shoulder blades.

_"Trust me,"_ Seth whispered as Kisara looked up, then sighed, giving off a smile. He clutched onto his millennium rod, it began to glow, and Kisara and Damon fainted at the same time. Two enormous dragons appeared on the stage as Joey stared at the Blue-Eyes White Dragon in pure amazement. This was the first time he's ever seen Seto's ace monster in real life.

"Amazing," Seth smirked with an impressed look on his face.

_"I'll say!"_ Joey agreed.


	19. Discussion

**Here's the next chapter. I thought it would be appropriate to have Damon and Kisara meet, since they do have alot in common. Not to mention it kinda fits. If you guys are wondering why Mana seems okay and not going all _"I'm glad you're back, Yugi!"_ it's because this has already happened. Mana and Yugi had their reunion already, so I'm just cutting to the chase if anything. Review please!**

Yugi planned a meeting with his priests the next day and decided to rest for the night to heal his wounds. There was also wanting to meet with his cousin and friends. Yugi had to discuss of what the next plan was going to be. He needed ideas from his friends about what was going to happen. They all met on the roof of the palace that night for this discussion

"Seth, I want to know what you're planning on doing with the woman," Yugi said.

"Kisara wants to learn to control her Ka. I can have her as a student. I'm going to be teaching Damon and Joseph anyways," Seth explained.

"Aknadin still knows about her."

"What are you talking about?" Mana asked.

"Seth is trying to help me find some information my priests aren't telling me about the attack on Kul Elna," Yugi explained as Mana's eyes widened.

"While doing this I found a young woman with a dragon as her Ka. It only emerges if she ever passes out," Seth explained.

"You mean that woman with you this morning was the Great White Dragon?" Mana asked in shock as Seth nodded. "Wow."

"There's something else. I was asking Kisara about what she knows about Kul Elna. She claims she doesn't know much, but she did hear from the locals that Lord Aknadin led an army to destroy the city. Rumor had it that he sacrificed those people to create the millennium items and that farmers could smell burning flesh from miles away," Seth said as Mana and Yugi stared at him in shock with gaping mouths.

"Even the women and children?"

"I'm going to have to talk to Shimon. I'm sure he would know something," Yugi said with furrowed eyebrows. "If what you're saying is true, I might have drop Aknadin from his duties."

"Shada also had said that, while searching for you, he found the hiding place of the thief king Ryou. He's in the Shrine of Kul Elna, which is now in ruins," Seth clarified.

"Then, I'll have a meeting with my priests and head for Kul Elna. I have a bad feeling Ryou has something cooked up."

"I'll come with you, Yugi!" Mana declared boldly. "Since Mahad is gone, it's my duty as the new Priestess to protect you!"

"Thank you, Mana," Yugi thanked Mana, then turned to Seth. "You take in charge of the palace in case the worst should happen. I'm also having you take charge of keeping an eye on Kisara and Aknadin."

"I will do my best, though I won't promise you anything," Seth smirked as Yugi smiled in response before him and the others headed for bed.

The next day, Yugi had a meeting with his priests about what his plans where. He discussed his plan of going to Kul Elna and setting their battle there. It was better than the city, where innocents could be killed off easily or used against Yugi. This seemed like a better idea. Seth was to take in charge of the palace until everyone returned. Aknadin was also to stay behind.

"I must warn you Pharaoh, Ryou will not be easy to defeat. I fear that he may prove to be more powerful than last time, now that he has the millennium puzzle," Shimon warned.

"I know. This isn't about defeating Ryou or bringing him to custody. I've come to realize that there is more about this_ Kul Elna massacre_ that drove Ryou to madness. I want to face whatever injustice was unleashed upon that city," Yugi admitted as the priests stared at him with widened eyes.

_"If your father had any other choice, he wouldn't have had to destroy that city,"_ Aknadin said quietly.

"I understand," Yugi replied with a serious tone. "Anyways, we should prepare for battle."

With that everyone left to prepare to battle at the town of Kul Elna. Shimon quickly walked to Yugi and called, "Pharaoh!" Yugi turned his head and Shimon quickly walked to him, and then sighed. "Your father never made the call." Yugi's eyebrows rose. "It was Aknadin. He believed that it was the only way to fight against the Persians. We were to make seven millennium items. He found The Book of the Dark Arts and discussed his plans to us priests. I told him this was a bad idea, in fact all of us did, but he digressed. Him and his army sacrificed the people of Kul Elna and used their Ba to forge the seven millennium items. When your father discovered this, he grew sorrowful and took the blame upon himself. He traveled to Kul Elna and last he was seen was of a dead corpse in the Shrine."

_"Why did you not tell me this?"_ Yugi asked quietly.

"I feared that you would suffer the same tragic death your father had. I was wrong for this and I _deeply_ apologize, my Pharaoh."

"I understand. My father wanted to protect Aknadin and, if that were Seth, I would do the same," Yugi assured Shimon, who nodded. "I can't trust Aknadin for right now, which is why he will not join with us."

"I understand, Pharaoh."

With that, Yugi walked out on his way to prepare to ride to Kul Elna. Everyone else prepared too, including Damon and Joey, ordered by Seth. Damon was unsure about this, but Seth was positive that, if his dragon was controlled by Joseph, there was nothing to worry about. The only mission they had was to protect the Pharaoh and that was all they needed to do. Kisara was to stay and train with Seth some more.

* * *

Seth and Kisara were training while everyone else was preparing for Battle. The dragon seemed to be responding to Seth for some reason. He knew it was because Kisara trusted the young priest with all her heart. Seth was her savior, her mentor, her friend. Not only that, she was _devoted_ to Seth.

The Blue-Eyes White Dragon was very glorious to look at and Seth smiled with pure confidence. Aknadin was on the other side having a Diaha against Seth with his Ka, which was a half man half snake. Kisara was lying on the ground in a safer location. Seth kept his eye on Kisara, while also focusing on his opponent.

"Blue-Eyes, strike the opponent with white lightning!" Seth declared as the dragon took a huge gulp of breath and blew a blast of white fire at Aknadin's Ka, burning it to shreds as the priest cringed in pain. "Return! Your work here is done!" The dragon disappeared and returned to the inside of the body of Kisara as she rubbed her eyes and got up on her feet.

"How did I do?" Kisara asked.

"Amazing! The dragon heeds to your commands!" Aknadin said with amazement. "This is fantastic!"

"You did great, Kisara. It seems I was right about your dragon. Knowing this, it should be easier to tame your dragon now," Seth said as Kisara smiled in great relief. "Wait here while I get the spell book and see if you can control your dragon on your own."

Seth and Aknadin left the room with Kisara in the training room alone. Seth did not want Kisara to be out in the public and he still needed to play _sneaking behind the Pharaoh's back_. Aknadin smiled at Seth proudly.

"This is amazing, Seth. The dragon will do anything you say! Perhaps I was wrong about this idea," Aknadin said.

"Her dragon is perfect to go against Diabound! I believe we have a chance against the thief king!" Seth smirked as Aknadin nodded in agreement.

"What do you plan on doing about the dragon?"

"First, I will tame it until it obeys my every command, then I will extract the dragon from the woman."

"Wouldn't that be _killing_ her?"

"It might, but one death is worth the lives of many and I know for a fact that I can convince the woman to make this sacrifice and she will do it."

"If you believe it's for the good of the kingdom," Aknadin nodded, then walked passed Seth. "I believe you might prove to be a better king already."

Seth showed two furrowed eyebrows, not liking what he just _heard_. He sighed heavily, then walked into the library and got out a scroll before returning to the training room. Something seemed wrong about the situation. Aknadin wasn't just talking about _making mistakes behind the Pharaoh's back_. Seth worried deep in his heart for his cousin's sake. He was also worried for Kisara.

Seth gave Kisara the scroll and she took it and read it. Seth advised, "read the scroll and you will learn how to summon a part of your Ka from yourself. Your dragon will not be as strong, but you will be in full control of it."

"I've never done a Diaha before," Kisara said.

"I can show you," Seth said with a smile as Kisara looked up and nodded.

Seth and Kisara stood in the opposite direction from each other. Kisara chanted the words of the scroll, and then a white dragon with blue eyes revealed itself from her body. It appeared as a baby version of Blue-Eyes White Dragon. Seth decided to be a little easy on Kisara, since this was her first time. He chanted a spell and summoned Saggi the Dark Clown. Kisara stood there nervous, not feeling sure about what to do.

"Um... attack?" Kisara commanded with sweat pouring from her face. The little white dragon took a huge gulp of breath and attacked Saggi the Dark Clown, blowing it from the field. She showed a joyful smile before she noticed her dragon began feeling very ill. _"W-What's happening?"_

"Saggi has a special ability that can sent a Virus to any monster with 1500 or above attack power. You must be aware of a Ka's special ability. They can be your most deadly weapon," Seth explained as Kisara began blushing cherry red.

"Oh... s-sorry."

"It's fine. You shouldn't expect to win on your first try, especially against a priest."

Kisara chuckled slightly before her dragon disappeared back into her body. She didn't feel the actual physical pain of a monster when it's destroyed yet. Seth wanted to still work with Kisara on fighting before showing her the risks she would be taking. She was way too fragile to have her feel the _physical pain_ just yet. Seth figured the Virus ability was good enough to teach Kisara something without her feeling the pain of her monster. The less she felt it the more willing she would be to fight.

"Do you want to try again?" Seth asked.

"Yes please! That was fun!" Kisara said as Seth nodded and they began summoning their monsters again.


	20. The Village of Ghosts

**Here's the next chapter. I'm sorry I took a little long for me to post this. I think you're already aware of the change I did to the story. Like Seth and Aknadin staying behind while Yugi and the other soldiers head out to Kul Elna, not to mention Yugi healing his wounds before heading out. The reason for this is, because I thought it was stupid of Yami to head out to Kul Elna with his priests with all the millennium items exposed in front of Bakura's site and not watching the palace. It's like all of them lining up and stamping _"WE HAVE THE MILLENNIUM ITEMS! STEAL FROM US NOW AND DESTROY OUR UNARMED PALACE!"_ I guess that was Yami's fault for being too cocky when deciding to move his characters all over to Kul Elna and leaving his palace wide open. What was also stupid is Yami not giving himself time to heal, again the fault of his own cockiness. At least in the anime, he did give himself time to recover before heading out, but he still should've left some of his men to guard the palace. This way, Yugi seems to be thinking with his head and not being a cocky and arrogant moron. **

**And if you don't get the joke it's referencing, _get out of here_ lol jk. Though seriously, if you really don't get it, you can ask me. Review please!**

Yugi, his priests, Mana, and the priests' soldiers headed out on their way to Kul Elna, prepared to strike at any given moment. They all rode on horseback, while Yugi rode on his chariot. They all had armor on, including Mana, who had to wear man-sized armor and helmet with her hair pulled back and tied with a cloth. Mana also had her helmet cover almost all her hair, since it was pulled back and tied.

Everyone traveled for days before reaching Kul Elna. Mana stayed with Yugi most of the time, since there was almost nobody else to talk to. Many of the men would sit around and talk about their life, while the priests and Yugi stuck together. Mana and Isis did make an effort in cooking some food for all the soldiers and they ate, laughed, and threw what was left of their food right behind them. One of the stuff hit Mana's face.

_"Eh!"_ Mana complained, taking her helmet off and wiping the food off her cheek. "Gross!"

"Oh... um sorry... Miss. We didn't know you were a... a woman" the soldier who threw the food asked Mana as she shook her head.

"Don't... it's not like we've never heard _that_ joke before," Mana assured before placing her helmet back on and returning to her group, Yugi drawing a picture on the sand of a big lipped alligator.

It was a matter of time before Yugi and his priests came upon a city in ruins. There was nothing but ash and rubble. This was, no doubt, Ryou's home Kul Elna. Yugi could already smell old burnt flesh and feel the cold wind brush against his skin, which was strange considering this was a desert climate. Yugi swore he could feel something _unnatural_ about this place.

"So, _this_ is Kul Elna," Shada muttered with furrowed eyebrows.

Yugi could feel almost like he can't breathe, as if _something_ is trying to tear out his heart. He could feel his heart trembling as his horses walked through the destroyed city. There were corpses everywhere, dead bodies of the slaughtering from Aknadin. Yugi kept wondering in his heart what was causing him to feel like _death_ was closing in on him.

"My lords!" One of the guards called out as Yugi and his priests faced the guard. "A few buildings ahead we found a trap door that leads to underground. Several soldiers have gone in to check it out."

"Be careful, Ryou maybe hiding," Karim ordered.

"Do you think we should go check it out?" Mana asked Yugi.

"If it means getting to Ryou," Yugi replied in agreement as Mana nodded. "Let's move out!"

The guard led Yugi and his priests to the trap door a few buildings head. In the trap door held several stairs, which led deep underground. Yugi hopped off his chariot while his priests and Mana hopped off their horses. Yugi walked to the front of the trap door. It seemed very dark inside and the cold breeze from the underground room brushed against their skin. Yugi could already feel his skin forming goosebumps.

Suddenly, there were terrifying screams coming from the inside of the trap door. _It was the guards!_ One of them cried out, "Pharaoh, this shrine is filled with evil spirits! Stay out! _For your life! Pha-_" Then there were sounds of bodies dropping dead. Mana gulped, placing her right fist on her bottom lip.

"COME ON OUT, PHARAOH! This is the temple of the dead! Do you want your millennium puzzle!? It's right here... around my neck!" Yami Ryou tempted Yugi before letting out a cocky laughter.

"We can't just leave them there!" Mana cried out.

"Pharaoh, going in there is too dangerous!" Shada warned.

"I'm going! You can come with me, Shada," Yugi said with order as Shada nodded in reply. Yugi turned to the rest of the group. "The rest of you stay here in case you run into trouble!" He turned to Mana. "If you feel there's any trouble ahead, send reinforcements under your command."

"I won't let you down, Yugi," Mana promised as Yugi nodded, then him and Shada walked down the steps.

Yugi and Shada entered, what seemed to be, an underground ritual. Yugi had a bad feeling in his gut that this was Aknadin's doing. There was no doubt he was responsible for this whole mess with Kul Elna and now there was enough proof to backup Shimon's word. The place was dark and held pillars surrounding a shrine with a tablet in the middle. The stone had a Pharaoh-shaped body with holes shaped like the millennium items.

"Back from the brink of death, huh _Great Pharaoh_?" Yami Ryou mocked as Yugi ran to one of the guards, who was on the ground with his hands around his throat.

"Are you alright?" Yugi asked as the guard responded with a humming sound from hurting. "Hang in there!"

"Take a look at this," Yami Ryou smirked, showing the stone on the ground.

"Looks like the game Operation. Where are the Tweezers?" Yugi asked playfully.

"It's- _wait what?_" Yami Ryou asked with widened eyes, then groaned, shaking his head. "_Never mind!_ This is the cursed tablet that connects this world to the next. The seven millennium items fit into these holes. Do you know why? This is where the millennium items were forged!"

"So... no tweezers?"

"UGH! WHAT IS THIS, A GAME TO YOU!?"

"Well... yeah."

"_Whatever._ Out of lust and power your royal family used dark magic to create the seven millennium items! The one price to pay was the lives of every men, women, and children."

"Listen, my father had nothing to do with this! One of his priests went behind his back and brought this misfortune! My father never made the orders! He is innocent of all charges!"

"_LIAR!_ YOU AND YOUR FAMILY ARE CURSED, BECAUSE OF YOUR VIEW OF _JUSTICE_!" Yami Ryou cried out in anger. "The evil spirits are around you, Pharaoh! They can't rest until they have their revenge against the royal bloodline!"

"Wait, hold on one second. Because of something you suppose_ my father_ did, you're planning on taking your revenge on me, who definitely had _nothing_ to do with this since... you know... I wasn't _born_ yet. Don't you think taking this on the _bloodline_ is taking this a little too far?"

"This is Ancient Egyptian times! Don't you read the Bible?"

"Well... I still think this is going a little too far. Not to mention harming innocent people, might I remind you, of my kingdom is kinda making _you_ the bad guy, don't cha think? If you call this _justice_, then you're seriously f***ed up."

"Ghosts, tare this Pharaoh to pieces!" Yami Ryou commanded as the ghosts began surrounding Yugi and making him unable to breathe or move.

"Pharaoh!" Shada cried out, running toward his king before the ghosts began surrounding him, making him unable to breathe or move.

"Give it up! The ghosts' hatred is especially powerful against millennium item holders!" Yami Ryou smirked.

Yugi began feeling his life slowly draining away. His lungs were hurting and his vision was beginning to faint away. He began feeling so weak, he fell on his knees and clutched tightly on his arms. Yami Ryou was laughing obnoxiously as Yugi began trying with all his might to breathe, but couldn't, finding this impossible. Tears were beginning to pour from his eyes from the intense pain.

"You will pay for your father's sins with your death," Yami Ryou said darkly.

_"It... wasn't... my father,"_ Yugi choked hoarsely, grabbing his neck. The ghosts would still not leave him.

Yugi began choking up a spell and suddenly, Dark Magician appeared in the same clothing as Magician of Illusions, only with Mahad's face. Mahad repelled the ghosts from Yugi with his magic as Yami Ryou's eyes widened, then shot a glare at the magician. Mahad stood guard at Yugi's side as the ghosts tried to get to Yugi, but couldn't fly passed the shield.

"You son of a bitch! You never stop, do you!?" Yami Ryou shouted.

"Are you okay, Pharaoh?" Mahad asked with concern.

"A few scratches, but I'll be fine," Yugi said with a soft smile. "These ghosts believe my father was responsible for the destruction of Kul Elna, but it wasn't him! He never gave the order! _Aknadin_ led the massacre against the town behind my father's back!" Yugi told Mahad.

"I know. That is why he went to Kul Elna. He thought by having the ghosts destroy him that they would rest in peace. Though, they want to destroy _his_ bloodline."

"But my father didn't do it!"

"They know that... I wasn't talking about your father."

"What do you..." Yugi asked, then something hit him. He closed his eyes and felt his arms shaking as he was recalling memories of his past growing up. He saw himself and Seth playing in the courtyard, then they both look up. Yugi runs to his father's arms while Seth runs to Aknadin's arms. For some reason... Yugi had always known this... _Aknadin was Seth's father._ That is why the ghosts want Yugi dead. He looked at the ghosts with pleading eyes. "I know what you want." The ghosts still wavered around the shield. "You want _him_. You want Aknadin. When my father came, he came to pay for his brother's mistakes, but that was not enough to take way the evil in his heart." The ghosts began slowing down, seemingly listening. "The former king wishes for a peaceful kingdom. He gave this duty to me. If the millennium items fall into Ryou's hands, this country will be swallowed by the shadows and more will suffer like you. I must stand up to him! Let me and I will bring Aknadin to you and you may do as you wish to him and me."

"DON'T LISTEN TO HIM!"

"You know this isn't the same _Ryou_ you knew as a villager. A demon has possessed him. Please trust me!" Yugi pleaded as the ghosts slowly still circled the shield around Yugi, then began disappearing one by one.

"WHAT!? _WHERE ARE YOU GOING!?_" Yami Ryou shouted before realizing the ghosts finally were gone.

Mahad lowered down the shield and the ghosts began surrounding Yugi again, this time not harming him. Yugi could hear their whispers saying, _'lead us to him'_ again and again as if hypnotizing him. The ghosts began entering inside Yugi's soul, making Yugi feel like they were putting a gun to his head. He had to bring them to Aknadin or they would kill him.

_"Just let me defeat Ryou,"_ Yugi said before focusing back on Yami Ryou, who shot a glare at him. "The ghosts agreed to spare my life enough to defeat you!"

"_Fools!_ No matter, I shall destroy you either way!" Yami Ryou smirked as a spirit inside of him emerged a huge monstrous version of Diabound with razor-sharp teeth and a monstrous face. "It is time for you to meet your end!"


	21. The Pawns of Memory

**I'll be going back and forth between Yugi's and Atem's group. Different things go on with the both of them. I'm also going to be going to the scene with Seth as well to explain the events going on there. Review please!**

A stampede of soldiers on horses began galloping right at Atem and his friends. They all screamed as the horses began galloping through them. They all had their arms in front of them like a shield before realizing that they were like ghosts in this world. Atem felt really embarrassed for forgetting about that as the horses left behind them and the gang was alone again. Atem decided to focus on more important things at hand.

"Well, this is f***ing perfect! We lost Yugi, the son of a bitch possessing Ryou tried to kill us, and we wake up in the middle of the streets and lose him!" Atem complained, then punched the ground._ "F***!"_

"Yeah, Ryou's alter ego sure did a number on us," Tristan commented. He glared at Seto. "And _you_ just stood there on the sidelines laughing about the whole damn thing!"

"You're seriously going to involve me just because I was smart enough to stand back before saving your asses? You should be thanking me," Seto smirked.

"That's enough arguing! We have to find Yugi!" Tea cried out.

"I'm sure he's okay, Tea. Otherwise we'd be dead right about now," Ryan said, rolling his eyes, then facing Bobossa. "Right Fatty?"

"Yes... I think so," Bobossa replied.

"Then, we need to find clues to Yugi's name," Tristan suggested.

"He's right. Say, where is Serenity?" Atem asked, realizing his girlfriend disappeared right before the stampede of horses.

"She went to the bar. She was asking me how she can collect information. I told her the first thing that came to my mind," Ryan replied.

"But you only go to a bar for information in a _role-playing _game!" Atem glared as Ryan shrugged.

"Guys, I know where Yugi and my brother are!" Serenity cried out, running from the bar.

_"You do?"_

"Yes. Yugi was saved by the Red-Eyes Black Dragon. It is heard that he is the dragon from a man named Damon, who is the brother of Joseph. Joey told me about Damon. He's supposed to be his ancient older brother. He found Yugi and brought him to the palace. They were last seen on their way to a city called_ Kul Elna._"

"Good work, Serenity!" Tea complimented her friend.

"I guess I could be wrong too. Apparently, you can find information in a bar other than just an RPG game," Atem admitted, sighing.

"Actually, you might be both right and wrong. Have you noticed something strange about this place?" Serenity asked as everyone looked at her with blinking eyes. "Think about it! When we made it to Yugi, all of a sudden time just went backwards. Not to mention, am I the only one that notices a pyramid above our heads?" She pointed toward the giant pyramid in the sky. "I know that we entered this world through Yugi's soul room, but... I'm very sure when we entered here, we came out of that pyramid."

"She's right... that is _strange_," Atem agreed, furrowing his eyebrows.

"Here's what I think, the pyramid is Yugi's soul room, but not his _true_ soul room. His true soul room can't be found, since it was erased. Yugi must recreate his own soul room by reliving his past. Though, how can he do that if he doesn't even remember his own past? How does it make any sense that his own past, which we are living in right now, are in _Yugi's memories_ when he doesn't even remember them?" Everyone stood with blinking eyes. Serenity was right! This doesn't make any sense. "Here's what I think: I don't think we are in _Yugi's soul room_, we never were. We were inside the puzzle. The door we entered was an exit door _out_ of the puzzle. When we came out, we landed in this place, which is _not_ Yugi's soul room at all."

"So, if this isn't Yugi's soul room, then what is it?" Seto asked.

"Call me crazy, but I think it's some sort of weird RPG game," Serenity replied as everyone's eyes widened.

_"Son of a f***ing bitch,"_ Ryan whispered with glaring eyes.

"How can this be an RPG game?" Seto asked with folded arms.

"Probably the same way _Monster World_ was. It must've been like a model version of this particular one," Atem thought. He faced Bobossa. "Is this whole world an RPG game?"

"Yes. I thought you already knew," Bobossa said.

"Oh sure, you are willing to tell us how to get into this bizarre world and tell us what our mission is, but telling us we were _playing_ a f***ing RPG S_hadow Game_? Oh no, _that's_ not important," Ryan said sarcastically.

"But if the door we went through was like an exit out of the puzzle, how does it explain Joey being here playing his ancient self?" Tea wondered.

"That was probably the one hosting this Shadow Game, who is responsible for that," Bobossa explained.

"Yes, because solving everything with _magic_ makes perfect sense!" Ryan said sarcastically.

"So, where do you suggest we start looking for Yugi's memories?" Atem asked, wanting to change the subject and find his brother's memories.

"The Pharaohs are buried around the Valley of the Kings. Every Egyptian planned their death before dying, even at a young age. This means that Yugi's tomb was no different. It had already been constructed while he was still alive," Tea said.

_"Egyptians are weird,"_ Tristan commented.

"The question is where is the Valley of the Kings?"

"There are soldiers once every day marching to the Valley of the Kings to guard it. We can follow them there," Seto planned.

"Great idea, Seto. I believe the soldiers go this way," Atem said, pointing to a certain direction, which was where pyramids were seen.

"Let's go then!" Tea cried out happily as she began running toward the direction Atem pointed. Everyone followed her toward the direction. Hopefully, it would not be long until they found Yugi's tomb.


	22. Involvement

**Here's the next chapter. I know I usually don't stop in the middle of one chapter and have two extra filler chapters in between, but I have to make this an exception. If I don't, then things will just appear out of nowhere and bla bla bla. I'm really sorry if you guys find this really pointless or just bad storytelling, but this was the only way to go. Review please!**

Kisara was found in the palace kitchen removing the wheat seeds from the wheat in the the huge baskets. There were other women doing the same task. Though Kisara did train under Priest Seth to Diaha, she also helped with labor around the palace. One of them included the kitchen work. As a former slave, Kisara was very good at any kind of hard labor, even harvesting. This provided her respect from some of the slaves and workers around the palace.

To Kisara's surprise, Kisara was able to make a friend. The young woman was a maiden with dark brown hair and eyes. She worked at the palace to support her younger sister. Her name was Esi. She wore a simple linen dress as her work clothing. Her and Kisara never spoke much, but were always found side by side most of the time they worked.

"How was your training?" Esi asked.

"Lord Seth says I'm doing better. The more I'm understanding about my dragon, the less afraid I am... at least when _I'm_ controlling it," Kisara replies.

"I think it's neat you have a very powerful dragon, especially for a lady."

Kisara smiled pleasantly, then answered, "thank you..." then, it changed to a worried expression. "but if the worst shall happen and I pass out, I know my dragon can do much damage."

"I'm sure Damon must feel the same way about his dragon," Esi assured while sprinkling the grain, in a large mortar, with water, and then pounding the grain with a pestle.

"I slightly envy Damon. At least his dragon was tamed by someone. I have no one to train my dragon... except lord Seth. He's practically the only family I've got... the first person that accepted me, despite my social status. I owe him my life."

"He does like you. You're probably the luckiest girl in all of Egypt. The first peasant girl to have caught the eye of someone of royalty."

"I'm not _that_ special. He's only doing this out of kindness. There isn't really anything special about me."

"I digress, Kisara. Lord Seth hardly pays attention to anyone and, as far as I know, he hasn't invited Damon to sit with him during meal time. He likes you and I mean _really_ likes you. Everyone here knows it."

"But why? I'm nothing compared to him! I have no class, I have no beauty, and everything about me shows no value. What value could he possibly see in _me_?"

"Maybe lord Seth sees your kind heart. You're probably the nicest person I know," Esi guessed, shrugging her shoulders.

"Thank you, though I really doubt lord Seth sees any value in me. I have no value."

Kisara gave the grain she cleaned off to Esi before the chief came to her and announced, "Lord Seth wants to meet with you in the Training Room!"

"Thank you!" Kisara replied before quickly walking out of the kitchen and on her way to the Training Room.

Kisara thought over what Esi said. She was usually a very observant person and would be the first to know what went on in the palace. Kisara kept wondering if Esi was right about Seth truly _liking_ Kisara. Seth was always caring for Kisara, even more than with Damon and Joseph. Though, what _value_ would Seth ever see in Kisara?

Kisara felt afraid. She feared of asking if this was possible and what Seth's true feelings were. Seth was not just a priest, he was a prince. Kisara was already lucky enough to have been given the offer of becoming Seth's harem, but there is no possibility for Seth to see Kisara anymore than a peasant woman. She could only be used to give birth to the future heirs to the throne. There could be nothing of value in Seth's eyes. Nothing.

The training room was empty, besides of Seth. Kisara peeked inside before letting herself inside in a very shy manner. Seth smiled as Kisara walked toward his direction.

"Where's Damon?" Kisara asked.

"This one is going to be just us and there's a reason. The Pharaoh and I have come to believe that Aknadin maybe a traitor," Seth said.

_"A traitor?"_

"I couldn't stop from you being involved in this. It started when I was marching around the city, under the Pharaoh's approval, to Ka hunt and find the priest that was involved with the destruction of Kul Elna. I was to pretend to _misuse my powers_ in order to gain the trust from whoever the traitor maybe. I originally was to care for you until you got better, but Shada sensed a power inside you, the great white dragon. Word spreads and now we have finally found our traitor and he wants your dragon to be extracted from your soul and, if that happens, it could kill you. That's one of the reasons why I wanted to train you as a student... so he wouldn't get his hands on you," Seth admitted, his eyes gazing from Kisara, who looked completely horrified. "I apologize for your involvement, but there was nothing I could do."

"It was not your fault. You showed me an act of kindness and one of your most trusted colleagues wants to kill me," Kisara responded, though still seemingly scared.

"I would normally keep this confidential, but I'm suspecting Aknadin is doing something dirty. You're his main target. I want to stay close with me at all costs. You also need to warn Damon. Aknadin might target him too, but I doubt it."

"Why is he after _me_?"

"Because your dragon obeys my command. _It's complicated._"

"I don't understand. I'm so confused."

"Because of my so called _dirty work_, he wants me to be the next king."

_"He wants to assassinate the Pharaoh?"_ Kisara asked in shock.

"I suspect he probably does, though I'm not sure. Either way, I want you and Damon to stay away from him as much as possible."

"I will do that, my lord. I won't let you down!"

"You can return back to your duties. You can inform Damon after you return."

"Okay," Kisara replied, bowing, then returning on her way to the kitchen.

"I also want you to keep this between us and Damon... maybe Joseph."

"I will!" Kisara responded with a huge smile across her face. She then, returned quickly to the kitchen. Seth showed a smile of his own.

Seth couldn't help, but admire Kisara. She held a deep heart of gold and a humble personality. Seth only met Kisara as a peasant and now sees her everyday as a woman of purity. Seth wished in his heart for Kisara to be trapped in the four corners of his heart for all eternity. Seth began wishing Kisara was of royalty. If only he could keep this woman forever.

* * *

After Kisara did her share of hard labor, she walked to Damon's and Joey's location in the courtyard. They were both sitting on the grass, Joey letting the sun hit his face with all its warmth. Kisara sat in front of the boys as they both looked at the woman's direction.

"Lord Seth has told me that Damon and I might be in grave danger," Kisara said as Damon rose two eyebrows while Joey showed a glare.

"What's happening?" Damon asked.

"Lord Seth says that one of the priests is a traitor and is after our dragons... mostly mine. My lord doubts lord Aknadin will be wanting yours since your dragon is only loyal to Joseph, but mine is loyal to lord Seth. From what he says, lord Aknadin wants to extract my dragon, killing me in the process."

"Why would he be interested in either of us? I can understand why he would want your dragon, if it's under his command, but it's under lord Seth's command. It doesn't make sense," Joey wondered.

"I'm not exactly sure. I think it might have something to do with him possibly wanting to assassinate the Pharaoh and having my lord as the new Pharaoh."

"Well, that's just weird! Lord Seth and the Pharaoh are as close as Joseph and I. Why would he be interested in _lord Seth_ being king? It makes no sense!" Damon thought.

"Personally, I think this whole thing is just bizarre! Family members are wanting to kill each other. Makes me glad _I'm_ not royalty!" Joey smirked.

"Either way, lord Seth wants us to stay away from lord Aknadin as much as possible," Kisara said.

"I don't care how high and mighty he is, anyone who messes with my brother better say his prayers!" Joey glared.

Damon sighed, then faced Kisara, saying, "I don't know lord Aknadin's motives, but I won't let him lay a finger on you, if I have anything to say about it."

"Same here," Kisara promised.

"Don't try to be a hero. You're a nice girl, you don't need to face anymore suffering than you already have faced," Damon said with a sleepish smile.

"And you are a sweet man."

Damon showed a small smile, then Kisara began asking, "so... have you ever met your parents?"

"Technically yes, but I don't really remember them. Joseph and I were slaves all our lives. We were seperated from our parents when we were sold. We only know the name of our father through our former master, before his place was destroyed, and it was only because I overheard him talking about my father's Will."

"You're lucky. I never knew the name of my father and mother. I've never had anyone until lord Seth found me."

"I suppose that makes the two of us," Damon said with a calm smile. "I think we're lucky that we could find ourselves here."

"I couldn't agree more," Kisara agreed, giving off a giggle. She leaned against a tree as Damon eyed her with a soft smile.

"What cha thinking?" Joey asked.

"I don't know, but sometimes I feel like Kisara and I have some sort of close _connection_ I can't really explain," Damon confessed as Joey rose two eyebrows and stared at Kisara. There was something about her that was _slightly_ familiar.


	23. The Ultra Spirit Beast

**Here's the next chapter. I apologize for taking a while. I was very busy this Christmas lol, how ironic? Then again, maybe not, since there's presents, dinner, etc. Time to bring on the next chapter! Review please!**

Diabound stood ten times more monstrous than before. It was like an alien morphing into another creature. Yugi began wondering if the spirit Ka's in this world were like the monsters in the Pokemon world where the monsters would evolve into another creature. It would be interesting to know. Yugi began chuckling at the thought, then caught himself and focused back on the mission at hand.

"Look at the size of that thing!" Shada commented with such shock.

"Shada, can monsters evolve into other creatures?" Yugi asked.

"I don't think so... at least I didn't _think_ certain ones could."

"My monster becomes stronger with the amount of darkness it possesses. The millennium items, ring and puzzle, evolved my monster into an unstoppable beast!" Yami Ryou explained.

"So it is like Pokemon," Yugi said with a friendly smile, then it turned into a curious look. "Wait, if the Ka's here are like Pokemon, does that make my Dark Magician like Ash's Pikachu?"

_"Pharaoh?"_ Shada asked questioningly, staring at Yugi like he had a little too much to drink.

_"I'm not gonna even ask how the hell you came up with that idea,"_ Yami Ryou said grimly. "Diabound attack!"

"Watch out, Mahad! He can copy attacks from you!" Yugi warned Mahad, who nodded in response.

Diabound shot a blast of fire from the mouth of its snaky tail toward Mahad, who twirled his wand, then created a vortex that sucked the blast inside. Yami Ryou glared in response as Mahad showed a victorious smirk.

"I have done some training in the Afterworld as well, while I was gone," Mahad responded.

"Wait, training in the Otherworld like Dragon Ball Z where fighters train in the afterlife with a hallow over their heads, then brought back to life to fight evil?" Yugi asked as Mahad stared at him wide-eyed.

"_AFTER_WORLD, NOT OTHERWORLD YOU NITWIT!" Yami Ryou shouted with a boiling hot red face. "Does _everything_ have to be compared to a Japanese Anime cartoon show, let alone Dragon Ball?"

"Why not?"

"Because it's stupid!"

"You mean like talking during their fights more than the actual fighting, always one on one (despite the fact another person can just fight along too), and friends always standing around like complete idiots and not doing a damn thing to help their friend in the fight, despite the fact they can fight any time of the day they need to?"

Everyone stood there blinking. It was so quiet, crickets were chirping, despite the question of them _existed_ in Ancient Egypt and the fact it was daylight. Shada looked up at the fight, then the ground, and showed a hint of pink blush on his cheeks. Yugi couldn't take the silence anymore and...

"I WAS FROZEN TODAY!" Yugi shouted and everyone stared at him with widened eyes.

_"I'm going to kill you now,"_ Yami Ryou glared before a portal appeared from behind him.

"Another Dragon Ball reference with super powers coming the f*** out of-"

"SHUT UP!" Yami Ryou shouted angrily before the blast, Mahad sucked in with the vortex, barely missed him and hit a pillar next to the stone tablet. "Missed!"

"So you think," Yugi smirked as Yami Ryou turned and saw the broken pillar beginning to fall on its way to the stone tablet.

"Diabound, protect the stone tablet!" Yami Ryou commanded his beast as Diabound used its snaky tail to wrap around the pillar to prevent it from falling onto the stone.

"As long as the Diabound is holding the pillar, it can't hide within the walls," Mahad smirked as he sent a huge dark energy blast at Diabound right at its gut, which sent a huge amount of pain to Yami Ryou.

"GO MAHAD! Send another dark energy blast!" Yugi smirked as Mahad nodded, then sent another dark blast before Diabound threw the pillar right at him. Mahad's blast burst the pillar into rubble and rained it beside the stone tablet. "So much for that."

"HA! All you did was make Diabound mad! Though, I will give you props for trying to target the stone tablet, I didn't expect you to go that route," Yami Ryou smirked smugly, then waved Yugi's millennium puzzle in his hand. "I can't protect the tablet and fight you, so I will use your item to summon out Bone Snapper!" There was a huge turtle creature with skull faces all over its shell and head like armor.

"No, it's supposed to be _'Bone Snapper I choose you'_ or at least _'Go Bone Snapper,'_" Yugi corrected.

"I swear, if you make another Pokemon or Dragon Ball reference, I am going to scream!"

"Hey Ryou, you're like the dark side of Ryou right? Wouldn't you and Ryou be like Kami and Piccalo? If I married Tea and had a baby with her, would you train him and turn good?"

"SHUT THE F*** UP, YOU F***ING NERD!" Yami Ryou screamed as Diabound camouflaged himself with the walls. Yugi and Mahad looked around for Diabound.

"Huh... it's kinda like how the Z Fighers would disappear during their fights and the opponents-"

"I swear, you are hitting my every nerve! Diabound will kill you!"

"Not while I'm around!" Shada declared as he held the millennium key forward, chanted a spell, and a two-headed jackal with armor appeared called Two-Headed Jackal Warrior. It sniffed, then threw its two-bladed ax, with a chain connected to it, directly at Diabound, who caught it with its hand.

"So much for that," Yami Ryou smirked as Diabound shot a blast directly at Yugi, who put his arm in front of his eyes to protect them from the light of the blast.

"Jackal, protect the Pharaoh!" Shada commanded his beast as Two-Headed Jackal Warrior put up its shield and he ducked Yugi to the ground. He coughed up some blood from his mouth from the attack on his monster.

"Are you okay?" Yugi asked worriedly.

"I'm fine. Get out of here and save yourself."

"No! I'm not leaving you!" Yugi refused, then got up on his feet, noticing Diabound had camouflaged itself again. "Mahad, blast around this place!"

"Sure thing, Pharaoh," Mahad replied before sending thousands of blasts all over the ceiling of the room. Yami Ryou laughed crazily with such cocky eyes.

"You can't win that way! You're so foolish!" Yami Ryou insulted before realizing that the light from the blasted ceiling showed parts of Diabound. "WHAT!?"

"I figured a few skylights would be enough to reveal Diabound, since he only camouflages in the shadows," Yugi winked, then looked up at Mahad. "Mahad, do your stuff!"

Mahad twirled his wand, then sent thousands of powerful blasts right at Diabound, sending tons of pains all over Yami Ryou, blood spilling from his eyes and mouth. Smoke filled Diabound from the debris as Yugi rose two eyebrows and began thinking a thought.

"Sending huge blasts and debris covering our opponent for over five minutes before revealing if he is still alive or not, despite the fact the villain can attack whenever he feels like it. How many Dragon Ball references are there? I swear if my brother were here, he'd be making a drinking game out of this," Yugi thought to himself aloud.

_"I... will kill you... with Diabound,"_ Yami Ryou horsed on his hands and knees and Diabound appeared through the smoke.

"And that was... five minutes and thirty seconds. Great record," Yugi complimented with a childish smile as Yami Ryou glared in pure hatred.

Yami Ryou chanted a spell and a huge amount of dark energy began sucking right inside him, making Diabound stronger than before. He said darkly, "I will make Diabound stronger than before. You fools cannot stop me!"

"How is this possible!? How much Ba does Diabound have!?" Shada shouted in horror.

_"IT IS OVER 9000!"_ Yugi shouted in an over-the-top voice.

"9000! That can't be right!"

"You did that on purpose," Yami Ryou snarled.

"Sorry, couldn't resist," Yugi said with a small innocent smile.

Diabound began to attack Mahad, who dodged every attack from the monster. He finally sent thousands of blasts on the monster, which was shielded by an invisible barrier made by Diabound. Mahad gasped, then glared intensely. Yugi held up nine fingers, biting the corner of his lip. Yami Ryou could already _suspect_ what Yugi was doing and Diabound, at that moment, sent a spiral wave through its chest at Mahad. He was hit and smashed right into a pillar as Yugi amost fell over backwards, being caught by Shada, and coughed up blood.

"Pharaoh!" Shada cried in worry.

_"Ow,"_ Yugi muttered, trying to stand up.

"This time, I will rip you to shreds! Nobody will ever make any Dragon Ball jokes again!" Yami Ryou shouted with crazy looking eyes.

"Aw, but I already counted nine," Yugi whined with disappointment on his face before Diabound was building up energy to send a blast at Mahad, who couldn't move due to the huge amount of pain.

"MAHAD!" Yugi cried, then smiled, showing his tenth finger, which made Yami Ryou more irritated.

"I'll protect you, my Pharaoh!" Shada cried out, holding out his millennium key.

"I don't think so!" Yami Ryou glared as Bone Snapper shot a blast from its mouth right from behind Shada, blasting him, before the millennium key flinged from his hand. The millennium key, then floated in the air and flew into Yami Ryou's hand. "I'll take that."

_"That... was so from... Star Wars... with the light... sabers,"_ Yugi mentioned.

_"At least it wasn't Dragon Ball,"_ Yami Ryou muttered to himself as Diabound's attack on Mahad was about to land until a blond female swooped right through one of the ceiling holes and took him from the ground. "What the hell?" Yami Ryou looked up at the ceiling to find a familiar blond magician holding Mahad by one arm.

"Mana," Mahad muttered, looking up at his former pupil.

"Don't worry Master, I'm right here!" Mana promised with her usual smile.

"But..." Mahad wondered before noticing a familiar body barely seen next to the hole above ground of Mana's body lying on the ground with guards guarding it. Karim and Isis jumped from one of the holes onto the ground, bending on his knees from the fall, then getting back up again. Other soldiers followed.

"Mana! Karim!" Yugi cried out joyfully.

"You didn't think I'd miss the fight did ya?" Mana slightly teased.

"Thank you so much! Shada is badly hurt!" Yugi said, helping Shada stand up.

"Easy there, big guy," Karim said, helping Shada on his feet as well.

"No offense, but you don't look too good yourself there either," Mana smirked.

"You know what I just realized," Yugi said.

"What is it?" Karim asked.

"Seeing that Diabound has grown extremely strong, how screwed we would be if we brought _all_ our millennium items. I mean I know that, if all six priests were here, it would seem extremely awesome, but looking at it from a _certain_ prospective. If say Diabound was stronger than all of us, we would be _totally_ screwed," Yugi thought as everyone laughed awkwardly.

"Yeah," Shada agreed.

"_Totally_ screwed," Isis said.

"Good thing I have Seth and Aknadin back at the palace, along with tones of other soldiers, otherwise if say Ryou does_ summon some demon from hell and were on its way to Egypt_, we would be even more screwed than coming here with all our millennium items with huge signs reading_ 'STEAL ME,'_" Yugi said with a huge smile on his face. "And I would have to count _the gathering of all powerful fighters in the final battle_ as another Dragon Ball reference!"

"This is getting really old really fast," Yami Ryou glared with pure annoyance.

_"What's Dragon Ball?"_ Mana asked with confusion.


	24. Torture Room

**Hey guys. Sorry I didn't post this chapter. I wanted to get started on my new fan fiction Finding Life Through Love, my first multichapter genderbending fan fiction. I already posted three chapters and I highly recommend you to check it out. I know most of the Yu-Gi-Oh love stories are usually yaoi or just awful, even genderbending ones, but I seriously want you to give this one a shot, even if you're not a wishshipper. I mean seriously, do I have to make Yami pair up with Yugi for you guys to like it? I'm not a big wishshipper either! Just give it a try and review to me what you think. Review please!**

Seth was looking for Kisara, since she had not been found in the Training Room after the priest called her. He searched in the kitchen, where Kisara was supposed to do her share of labor in the palace, but she was not found and Esi had no idea where she might be. Seth, then made his way to the courtyard, but she was not there either. He was beginning to worry and decided to ask Damon and Joey.

Damon and Joey were washing the floor of the bathroom. Joey kept complaining in his mind how _unfair_ this was and how he _wished he had a mop_. His hands were starting to turn raw from all this floor cleaning. He was slightly relieved when Seth arrived.

"Have you seen Kisara?" Seth asked.

"We thought he was with you," Damon replied, seemingly concerned. "I saw her running on her way to the Training Room."

"Kisara told us about this Aknadin guy. You think he might have something to do with this, priest boy?" Joey asked. Damon disapproved of Joey calling Seth this, but the young priest did not mind this at all, so Damon didn't complain.

"I... _oh Ra, I hope not._ I'll go look for Aknadin," Seth said.

"I'll come with you. Joseph can look in other parts of the palace, just in case Kisara is not with Aknadin," Damon offered.

Seth nodded, then him and Damon made their way, Joey searching around in other parts of the palace. Seth led Damon on his way to the torture room, which he feared was where Kisara might be located, if Aknadin was _really anxious_ to push the great white dragon out. Seth and Damon lift themselves on a horse for themselves and rode on their way to the torture room, Damon unknowingly.

Damon noticed the area him and Seth were riding to seemed to be underground with a huge trapdoor. His eyebrows furrowed as him and Seth halted their horses and tied them to a nearby tree. Seth opened the trapdoor, so he and Damon could enter inside. They entered, following the path of lit torches. Seth knew _someone_ was down here, since the torches were lit.

"Do you think lord Aknadin brought her here?" Damon asked.

"_I know._ Why else would these torches have been lit? No one would ever think to come here or have a _reason_ to," Seth replied.

"What is this place, by the way?"

"It's supposed to be a torture room for prisoners. We use these to get information from prisoners of war, among other things."

"Why would Aknadin be taking Kisara _here_?" Damon asked, trying to keep his voice normal and not show his astonishment.

"Probably to release her dragon. Usually, if a person is in the middle of a life and death situation, they'll bring their Ka's out. Kisara knows what's going on, so Aknadin will try to _force_ the dragon out of her and seal it in a stone tablet."

"Do you think he will try to do the same to me?"

"Perhaps. According to him, if you're loyal to me, your dragon is worth giving me power. I suppose my _undercover work_ went a little too far. I'm hoping that you are more loyal to Joseph than me for your own life's sake."

Damon gave a nod, then replied, "I understand."

Seth turned a corner to where the torture room was located, seeing the room was completely lit. He turned to Damon and said, "stay here. If something happens to me, don't go after me. Run to the palace, take your brother, and run. Don't look back. I can't let you be in Aknadin's hands, whether your loyalty truly lies in Joseph or not."

"Yes, my lord," Damon obeyed as Seth walked toward the lit room, not seeing red eyes furrowing deeper.

Seth walked through the curtain, covering the room, and saw Aknadin and a wrinkly old man in a cloak sitting on a gold and wooden chair. There was a deep hole in front of the golden chairs with different wooden stands, supported by chains, for the prisoners to stand on. There were two prisoners still standing on a wooden stand, while two others were in the huge gaping hole, killed. Kisara stood on the third wooden stand, holding onto one of the chains for dear life.

"Aknadin, what is the meaning of this? I never said you could test her! _She's not ready!_" Seth asked enraged.

"Who said anything about _testing_. I'm simply sealing her dragon inside the stone tablet. You shouldn't _waste_ this opportunity. If she summons her dragon by a spell, it will not be powerful enough and, as long as that dragon of hers is still inside her, you will never be able to defeat Bakura and take the throne."

"What are you... forget it! I never asked for this! I want the dragon, but not if it's not _tamed_ yet! What if that dragon goes out of control?"

"You doubting yourself too much, but don't worry, I will make this _go away_," Aknadin said with a sadistic smile that brought Seth chills down his spine. "Seth, we must have the power of the Great White Dragon as soon as possible or risk this kingdom falling to the hands of a thief!"

Two Ka's appeared from the criminals as a huge worm with insect-like legs that were like knives and a monster with a body of a spider and a demon head with razor-sharp teeth. They hovered over Kisara, who shook in fear, sweat pouring from her face as she looked into the eyes of the monster. Fear had overtaken her.

"At this rate, you're going to kill her before the dragon even has a chance to appear and we would've lost our chance!" Seth yelled at Aknadin angrily, not noticing Damon peeking from the curtain.

"Her fear of dying will extract her Ka instantly. Do not worry."

"She's _afraid_ of her _Ka_! How the hell do you expect her to _want_ the damn dragon to protect her, if she's afraid of it? She's not like Damon! That's why she _needs more time_!"

Before Seth could argue any farther, he noticed the two monsters preparing to slaughter Kisara while she stood there crying and shaking in fear. Aknadin stood there dumbfounded, wondering why Kisara was resisting. Seth, then ran to the edge of the hole and chanted a spell to summon his Duos to protect Kisara. Seth grabbed onto Duos' leg as it jumped onto the wooden stand Kisara was on before landing onto it.

Kisara turned her head and saw her savior before falling into Seth's embrace crying in fear. Seth held Kisara tightly while she wept, whispering, _"it's okay, Kisara. I'm here. I won't let anything happen to you."_

_"I was on my way to see you, th-then lord Aknadin came and-"_ Kisara sobbed in a whisper.

_"I know. Stay close and hang on."_

Kisara nodded, wrapping her arms around Seth's neck for a good grip as, during the fight, Duos cut two of the chains holding Kisara's wooden stand. Kisara screamed as Seth grabbed onto her from the waist and used his other hand to grab onto one of the chains. Kisara's arms loosened, eyes closed, informing him that the girl had fainted.

"Well, that was close! It's a good thing my Ka has the ability to spin web!" One of the prisoners cried out. Duos also cut the chain to the other prisoners' wooden stands as well. One prisoner still survived with a web, from his worm Ka, holding him in midair. "And look what happened to your monster, Priest!"

Seth looked and watched his monster fall into the hole. With Duos gone, Seth had no monster to protect him. The worm-like monster was about to attack until Kisara's body began to glow. Seth slightly gasped before looking up to see the Blue-Eyes White Dragon protecting the duo.

_"Oh no,"_ Seth whispered, trying to reach his hand to his millennium rod, which was hooked onto his belt, while still holding Kisara. The dragon fired a beam of white lightning at the monster, its tail shielding Seth and Kisara who were hanging on for dear life. The attack not only killed the monster, but its master as well, leaving them nothing but ash. The beam was so powerful, it burst a hole through the roof of the torture room.

Aknadin clapped, walking toward the dragon, who glared at him. He smirked, saying, "excellent! Now, to seal you up." He began to chant a spell as a group of men lifted a huge slabbed stone.

Seth tried to reach for his millennium rod, but it was too far in his belt to reach. If he tried to reach it, he might drop Kisara, and if he didn't reach it, Kisara will die. At this point, he felt helpless to save Kisara. _He had failed her._

Suddenly, Aknadin was lifted into the air and thrown against the wall, knocking him unconscious He passed out as Seth gasped, seeing Red-Eyes Black Chick hovering over Aknadin. Damon appeared from behind the curtain as the dragon disappeared and the white dragon moved Seth and Kisara next to the red-eyed man. Seth carefully laid Kisara down to check and see if she was injured.

"You don't listen, do ya?" Seth asked plainly.

"Technically, you said for me to stay put and run if anything happened to you and, from what I can see, nothing happened to you and I never moved from my position until lord Aknadin passed out," Damon replied plainly.

"Very well, but don't count on getting away with this the next time you don't listen."

"Fair enough," Damon agreed, nodding, then looked to Kisara. "She seems to be in shock, but okay nonetheless. I should thank you."

"You did your part too, Damon. You were willing to sacrifice your life to save ours. Let's take Kisara back and we can deal with Aknadin later," Seth said as he carried Kisara bridal style and him and Damon made their way out of the torture room.

Seth held Kisara in front of him on his horse, after untying it, and rode on his way to the palace, Damon with him. Seth knew that he had to make a story for what happened to Aknadin when he was _attacked_, while also protecting Kisara and Damon. Seth held an idea to keep Kisara and Damon safe, while also giving an excuse for what happened. This was the only way to protect the two dragon holders.

Seth and Damon stopped their horses by the palace and tied them. Seth took Kisara in his arms as Damon looked at him and asked, "what now?"

"Because of your little _show_, I'm going to have to tell Aknadin that you followed me and attacked us, saving Kisara. This means I'm going to have to hide you both and Joseph until Yugi's return. I want you and Kisara to continue your training on your own until Aknadin is out," Seth explained.

"But Kisara's dragon is only loyal to _you_. What if it gets out of hand?"

"I've noticed that you and Kisara's dragons are loyal to those you care about and protect. Kisara seems fond of you, Damon. Her dragon will obey _your_ commands like it does with me."

"Lord Seth, I think-"

"No Damon, take care of Kisara and protect her with your life. You two share a powerful dragon that is as powerful as the Egyptian gods, maybe more. You will get Joseph and the three of you will hide along the cliffs of the Nile. Only train with your miniature dragon counterparts and _you will_ get stronger. I will come to you when it is safe to appear," Seth commanded, giving Kisara to Damon, who stared at the blue-eyed girl. "Take the spell scroll too. You will need that if the worst shall happen."

"Thank you, my lord," Damon thanked, bowing to Seth. "Though, I must confess, I think Kisara is more fond of you than me... nothing to your offense."

Seth showed a smile before answering, "non taken. I find myself fond of her too. There is no shame for her to love, if she is to be my harem."

"You are different, my lord. I thank you again," Damon said, bowing again before walking his way to the palace, holding Kisara, to prepare his brother, Kisara, and himself to where Seth would hide them at.


	25. Together Against the Darkness

**Here's the next chapter. Aknadin will come eventually, but I'm going to have to do the whole scene right. Compared to the manga, this one will be played a little differently, especially since Aknadin is at the palace and not at Kul Elna. Review please!**

Isis and Karim summoned their Ka's: Mystical Elf and Curse of Dragon. The two Ka's began perusing Diabound, trying to find a way to destroy it. Diabound tried swinging its fist against Mystical Elf, but it dodged the fist right on time. Yugi knew he couldn't just sit down and watch his friends try to fight for him and getting themselves killed. He began moving forward.

_"Pharaoh, don't try to fight anymore! You've done enough!"_ Shada cried out, still wounded.

"I'm alright!" Yugi replied, knowing that he couldn't fight like this, if Mahad was hurt very badly. He then noticed Mana using a spell to give Mahad some of her magic.

_"Please, leave this fight to us priests!"_ Shada pleaded as the two Ka's attacked Diabound at once. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough, since it grew more powerful when Yami Ryou stole Shada's millennium key.

"No matter how many of you there are, you're still nothing, but weaklings!" Yami Ryou smirked as Diabound's snake tail bit into Mystical Elf and Isis cringed in pain, her hand clutching her chest and blood coughing from her mouth.

"Isis, are you okay?" Karim asked in worry as Isis slightly nodded. Diabound roared in satisfaction.

The monsters tried attacking Diabound, but nothing seemed to scratch it. Diabound sent a blast of magic at Mana, only for her to dodge the attack right on time. Curse of Dragon attacked the monster, only for the tail to whack the boned monster. Karim cringed from the pain, trying to hold in as much as he could. Yugi still felt guilty for letting his priests fight the battles for him, even if they did mean well.

"There has to be a way to defeat that thing! Is there anything we can use?" Yugi asked.

"There is. We can use my Millennium Scale to fuse our monsters," Karim declared, showing his millennium scale.

"Okay, that's just an excuse to make another Dragon Ball reference," Yugi said, furrowing his eyebrows and crossing his arms.

"HOW THE HELL IS THAT-" Yami Ryou asked with frustration.

"HELLO! Vegeta and Goku used the Kai earrings to fuse, so they could last longer in their fusion state!" Yugi reminded.

"What!? That's _completely_ bizarre! That seems like something the writer decided to pull out of his ass to make the fusion last longer and completely skip the humor of the dance routine!"

"That's what I thought too. My brother thought it was lazy for them to just do the earring shit and having to save the dance number for the movie."

"SCREW THE MOVIES! THEY SUCK ANYWAYS!"

"What the hell are you guys talking about?" Karim asked, him and the other priests staring at Yugi and Yami Ryou in complete bafflement.

_"Nothing important,"_ Yami Ryou growled.

"By the power of the scale, I combine the two Ka's!" Karim declared aloud.

"Hey Karim, question: the Scale has the power to judge right? Like the millennium eye has the power to reveal a man's heart, so it makes sense why Aknadin was able to reveal a Ka inside a man's soul. Isis' millennium necklace has the power to see the future, which is why she's able to pick up visions of the past and present. Seto's millennium rod has the power of control, kinda like a scepter, which is why he's able to pull a Ka out of a man's soul and into a stone slab. The millennium ring has the power of sealing souls or darkness, which is why Mahad is able to sense the darkness of other people's souls and maybe even seal souls inside the item itself. The key has the power to unlock the hearts of people's souls, which is why Shada can sense a Ka in a man's soul. My puzzle has the power of unity, combining us as a whole. Am I correct?" Yugi asked.

"Most certainly, Pharaoh!" Karim agreed.

"So, if the scale's power is judging, what does fusion have to do with _judging_? I mean shouldn't the millennium _puzzle _have the power of fusion, since... you know... it has the power of _unity_? I mean... using the scale to fuse seems like a power pulled out of someone's ass. The scale being used to fuse makes as much sense as me becoming Black Luster Soldier, while riding on Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon,_ which actually would be totally badass by the way._"

"The scales are in balance! Each scale as a piece of our Ba... so our two Ka's come together!" Karim declared as he held up the millennium scale and it began to glow, fusing Curse of Dragon and Mystical Elf together. Together, they became a white magical dragon called Mystical Dragon. Yami Ryou gasped at the sight before showing a glare of annoyance.

"What the f*** does that mean?" Yugi asked, seeming completely lost.

"No idea, but it is the power of unity."

"That's the power of the puzzle, not the scale."

"Then-"

_"You're just pulling things out of your ass, aren't ya?"_

"Yep."

"Is that all this battle is all about, things pulling out of your f***ing asses just so you can win the game?" Yami Ryou asked in rage.

"Well, half the shit in seasons 8 and 9 of Dragon Ball Z were pulled out of the writer's asses, why not this?" Yugi asked rhetorically. "In fact, here's a power that's pulled right out of my ass! Mahad can double Mystical Dragon's power!" Mahad folded his arms against his chest and a glow appeared about him and doubled Mystical Dragon's attack._ "Wow, that actually worked?"_

"That's it, YOU'RE DEAD!" Yami Ryou yelled as Mystical Dragon shot a firey blast at Diabound. Suddenly, Diabound began blasting a spiral wave from its chest. Both blasts were pushing against each other.

"Wow, it's like the Kamehameha's blasting against each other at the end of season 6 in Dragon Ball Z," Yugi said brightly.

"What is Dragon Ball Z, Pharaoh?" Karim asked.

"It doesn't matter. Since you fused your monster Ka's, then I will fuse my monster's attacks!" Yami Ryou smirked as Diabound's snaky tail shot a blast from it's mouth, merging with the spiral wave. The double blasts were so powerful together, the attack was pushing Mystical Dragon's blast back. Diabound's double blast was about to reach Mystical Dragon before Mana sent sent a dark energy blast at the double blast and it hit the wall of the cave. "You were able to dodge a really powerful blast after someone else hit it with a slightly _less_ powerful blast?"

"I guess if that works in Dragon Ball-"

"ENOUGH! NO MORE DRAGON BALL REFERENCES!" Yami Ryou yelled, being so mad he didn't notice that Mystical Dragon sent another attack at Diabound, but the blast still didn't effect him. "HA! Even after your so called _'unity'_ it's still no match for Diabound!"

"OH CO'MON! This is as cheap as the villain Broly, _who, by the way, has to be one of the most pathetic, annoying, overrated, and worst Dragon Ball Z villain you'll ever meet in your life!_" Yugi complained.

_"I am going to kill you now."_

"Not unless we can defeat you first!"

Mystical Dragon, Mana, and Mahad kept blasting Diabound, trying to weaken it as much as they could. As they were all trying to weaken the monster, a blast appeared, sending a surprise attack straight at Karim as everyone gasped and he fell over, dropping the millennium scale in the process.

"Okay, that was so a complete rip-off from the surprise attack on Trunks by Cell. _It's the same freakin' scene!_ The only difference is that it's not as realistic or as dramatic!" Yugi glared with folded arms.

_"Pharaoh,"_ Karim muttered, trying to support himself on his hands and knees.

"Oh shit!" Yugi asked, scared out of his mind as Karim fell on the ground.

Suddenly, the millennium scale floated in midair and was caught into Yami Ryou's hands. Yami Ryou smirked, "Now that I have your scale, you can't fuse anymore!" Mystical Dragon disappeared at that moment and changed back into its original two separate monsters.

Yugi knelt down and held Karim up in his arms. He was barely breathing as he said, _"M-My lord..."_

"Karim!" Yugi cried out, but there didn't seem any response. "KARIM!"

"Well, if Karim is Trunks, now I know who the Vegeta of this scene is, right Pharaoh?" Yami Ryou asked rhetorically with a sickly smirk on his face.

"No, because I won't attack you unthinkably! I will attack with strategy and it looks like our efforts _weren't_ in vein," Yugi said, pointing to Diabound's weak and most wounded part from all of the attacks from the Ka monsters. Yami Ryou gasped, then glared. "Mahad, you do the rest!"

Mahad sent a huge dark energy blast with a simple spell that made a direct hit at Diabound at its weak and most wounded point. Diabound was killed in that instant and Yami Ryou coughed up a huge chunk of blood from his mouth. His world was starting to become blurry from the loss of blood. He knew he didn't have much time. He had to rise up Zorc as soon as possible.

Yami Ryou began toppling, then fell on the stone tablet, trying to scrounge the millennium items in their exact holes. He was able to place them in their exact holes in time before Mahad and Mana pulled him back from the stone tablet. Yugi walked to Yami Ryou until they were face to face.

"_It's over!_ You don't have all the millennium items, especially since we still have our other two at the palace and one with Isis!" Yugi glared as Yami Ryou smirked in satisfaction.

"You seriously think this is over? HA! This is only the beginning Pharaoh. While you were fighting me, I had some _other arrangements_ back at your so called _palace_," Yami Ryou smirked as Yugi's eyes widened and eyebrows were raised. He had a bad feeling about this.

"SETH!" Yugi cried out as a strange glow surrounded him, his priests, guards, and Mana. They couldn't move or talk.

Walking in the shadows, from behind Yugi, Aknadin began walking toward the frozen priests with a millennium rod in his hand. Yugi looked back and turned pale white, knowing Seth was in grave danger. He also feared for the safety of Kisara and Damon. This was not looking good; not looking good at all.

"Hello dear nephew, so good to see you. I decided to join in for the fun. I heard you didn't _trust me_ and you have every right not to. Though, it was foolish to have my son spy on me," Aknadin said grimly. Yugi's eyes stood widened in shock. Aknadin was his _uncle_? _Seth's father?_

_'Oh shit!'_ Yugi thought in his mind.

Aknadin walked to Isis and took off her millennium necklace as she stood helplessly still. The traitor smirked, "I bet you are wondering why I would betray you, dear nephew. You should know, Pharaoh. It's in your memories." If Yugi wasn't frozen still, he would be shaking in fear. "Fifteen years before this time period, your father was at war against the Persians. We had seven days before our kingdom was to be taken over by them. We were desperate. I finally found The Book of Dark Arts in the forbidden ruins where the Lord of Darkness lies." Yugi already could guess _whom_ Aknadin was talking about. "In exchange for my soul, he promised victory over Egypt hidden within that book. That day, I exchanged my soul and made the sacrifice of all those people in Kul Elna. It was just too bad there had to be a soul survivor among the ruins." Yugi knew there was no hope now in bringing Aknadin back. He had sold his soul to the devil himself in exchange for power. It was no wonder the former Pharaoh was in so much pain before his tragic death. "It was my dream for Seth to stand by me, exchange his soul for power just like I have. I taught him everything I know, but he refused! He said he would _'rather die than become a monster like me.'_ You had made my son too soft for his own good. Fortunately, I never take_ 'no'_ for an answer."

Yugi could feel fear right in his gut as he watched Seth appear with hallowed eyes, just like Joey and Hanaski when they were possessed by Marik. Yugi remembered the vision in Battle City. _Seth was being controlled by Aknadin through the millennium rod!_ It all made sense! Aknadin stole the millennium rod from Seth, then implanted control on him. Even if Seth did hold the millennium rod, he would never be able to fight the control Aknadin placed on him. Yugi would know this! Marik implanted control on Atem as well.

"It's too bad you couldn't remember any of this or you would've seen this coming, dear nephew," Aknadin smirked sickly, a darkness in his eye. Yugi had never felt more scared in his life, mostly for Kisara, Damon, and Joey. "I bet you are worried about your dragon friends eh? Well, my foolish son used the rod to erase their location he sent them, so I was not able to find them anywhere. They ran off and I don't know where they are, but I intend to find them no matter what the case maybe. With the Great White and Great Black Dragon in my possession, I will be the most powerful being on earth! _I will be unstoppable!_ Of course, there is the issue with Damon's loyalty, but once I have his pathetic brother Joseph the rest should be easy. Damon will have no choice, but to obey me for his brother's safety."

Yugi knew of the risk Joey would be facing when it came to whoever possessed the millennium rod. When Marik held the millennium rod, he could kill the mind of a person he implanted control over in a blink of an eye. Damon would have to choose between losing his brother or do Aknadin's dirty work. The worst part of the situation is if Aknadin was able to control Damon and Kisara, if they changed into their Ka. Yugi didn't want to think about it. The only thing on his mind was hoping that those three were hiding in safety for right now.

**A/N: For farther note. A reviewer had asked me what would happen with Seth. Well... here's your answer lol. I also decided to point out more Dragon Ball reference jokes, maybe even to the point of nitpick. Just to be clear, I'm not a Dragon Ball or Dragon Ball Z fan. I watched the episodes, but only for an upcoming crossover fan fiction and there were some things I like. As for the fusion thing with the scale, I thought that was only in the anime that it was done, but... I was wrong. Apparently, using the scale to fuse was from the manga too and what Karim said, explaining how the scale can fuse Ka's ****_"The scales are in balance! Each scale as a piece of our Ba... so our two Ka's come together!"_**** that was from the actual manga and the ****_only_**** explanation of how the fusion was possible. Sorry, but that's just baloney! I would expect the ****_puzzle_**** to have that power, since it has the power of unity. You can't use the other millennium items for ****_unity_****, except the puzzle. The thing about the millennium items was that each of them held a different power, like different elements: one was sealing, one was unity, one was time, one was unlocking, one was control, one was revealing, and one was judging. It also made sense why a certain power matched the type of millennium item and why it had the power to perform certain magic. Using the power of judging to fuse two monsters is just a load and using ****_unity_**** with the scale was just lazy. It just seemed that during that last part of the battle, the writer just dropped the ball and it was kinda disappointing. The only upside is that this isn't the final battle.**

**Now, for those of you that like Broly from Dragon Ball Z, because I have actually seen plenty of Broly videos on YouTube and Broly pics, I apologize if me bashing him offends you. Personally, I hate Broly. He's the worst and laziest villain to ever show up in Dragon Ball Z. There was no real character to him. He was just a whiny pest, who was fighting Goku and his friends just because he didn't get his way. To me, Broly is a three-year-old in a man's body throwing a temper tantrum. I know he's supposed to be sympathetic, because he was controlled by his father, but... I actually don't blame his father for doing what he did. Broly, to me, was so bad, he makes Anakin Skywalker more tolerable, which is saying a lot. I honestly don't know why anyone on this planet would like Broly, other than the fact he smashes things! He has no character development, there's nothing to sympathize with him about, he's even more bland than all the star wars prequel characters combined, and is so overrated, it's irritating. If you like Broly, all power to ya, but I am curious as to know why you would like Broly. I'm just curious why he would have such high ratings, so much that he would appear in two more films after his first appearance. I just wanna know.**


	26. Zorc Awakens

**Here's the next chapter for this story. I'm glad you guys enjoyed my Dragon Ball Z references lolz. I just HAD to put them out, because Yu-Gi-Oh was based on Dragon Ball and, after watching Dragon Ball Z for my upcoming fic, I couldn't resist in putting them in here. Yes, I am planning on writing a fan fiction that's crossing over Yu-Gi-Oh and Dragon Ball Z, along with other cartoons as well. You will know more about it soon enough. For right now, enjoy this chapter. Review please!**

Aknadin walked over to the stone tablet, gorging out the millennium eye from his eye socket. If Yugi was able to move he would be really cringing right now. Yami Ryou chuckled darkly, eying Aknadin with such devious eyes. Seth continued to follow Aknadin with a hallow expression on his face. Yugi wanted to cry out to Seth to snap out of Aknadin's control, but he couldn't.

"Good work, Aknadin. You have done well and I like what you've done with the young prince," Yami Ryou smirked, walking around Seth impressively.

"It is my pleasure, my lord. After all, _nobody_ can handle Seth like his _father_ right?" Aknadin smirked victoriously.

"Right," Yami Ryou agreed, then showed a grim look. "Now, are you going to stand there or are you going to go on with the ritual already?"

"Right!" Aknadin said, then placed in the two remaining millennium items and the stone tablet began to glow.

"ZORC NECROPHADES!"

The earth shaked and trembled as the tablet began to shatter. Yugi could only stand helplessly in fear as the evil demon Zorc began breaking out of the earth. He was a huge monster bigger than a five star hotel, two feet with enormous claws, wide hands with claws, two huge horns on his head, grinning like a skeleton, red eyes glowing from his eysockets, and a snake tail that appeared from behind him, ready to gobble anything up.

Yugi felt like shaking in fear by this demon's appearance. Just then, he noticed that Yami Ryou dropped to the ground. Yugi's eyes widened as Ryou began opening his eyes slightly, rubbing them, then looking up at the demon before screaming bloody murder.

"WHA-WHERE AM I!?" Ryou screamed. Yugi could only guess that Ryou was back to normal. He turned to Yugi with widened eyes. "Pharaoh! What's happening?" He then turned to the demon with angry eyes. "WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO THEM AND WHERE'S RYAN!?"

_"I'm afraid your Ryan is a little too _busy_ right now to come to your rescue, but don't worry, I have a _lovely surprise_ for him and the Pharaoh's vessel! You are of no use to me now!"_ Zorc declared as he lifted his foot up, about to squash Ryou, who ran from him, then pushed Aknadin to the ground punching him in the face over and over again.

"YOU SON OF A BITCH! YOU RUINED MY LIFE! I HATE YOU! I HATE YOU! I HATE YOU!" Ryou screamed like a mad man. This was able to free everyone else from control, except for Seth for some reason.

Yugi ran to Ryou and pulled him away from Aknadin to bring him to safety. Ryou fought hard to be released from Yugi's grasp, but it was of no avail. Yugi pulled Ryou from the demon and hit him against the stone wall of the cave.

_"Get a hold of yourself!"_ Yugi glared.

Ryou glared madly, then took a deep breath and cried on Yugi's shoulder. At that same moment, Zorc transferred his dark powers to Aknadin and he took it all in. He began to transform, becoming more powerful than he had ever been before. His hair turned back to its black color and he was seen in a huge purple robe with a hood to cover almost half his face, dark black-red eyes were shown behind the hood with a sinister smile. Darkness engulfed his every essence.

Ryou glared, his arms shaking in anger, whose hands were clutching onto Yugi's tightly. Tears were showing to still be rolling down Ryou's cheeks. He still remembered the soldiers barging into his house and using their torches to burn the last of his parents and his little sister. Now, Ryan was the only family Ryou had left, and this monster and Zorc were planning on taking him away too? Ryou wanted this man to _pay _for all the crimes he made!

_"It seems little Ryou is getting a bit edgy huh?"_ Zorc asked mockingly.

_"You... Aknadin... HE KILLED MY FAMILY! He ruined my life! Because of him, I was alone and afraid! I had nobody to rely on, but myself!"_ Ryou cried out in both anger and sadness, more tears began streaming down. Yugi stared at Ryou blankly in shock and sympathy. All the priests did the same, except for Seto. Ryou then, glared angrily at Zorc. "Then... you used me as a puppet! You made me hurt and kill! I never wanted any of this! I just want to be left alone!"

_"Very well, I will leave you alone! You are of no use to me anymore and now you will die, along with the Pharaoh and his priests! You should consider yourself happy!"_

"Wait, my son! You can't just leave him here to die!" Aknadin pleaded Zorc.

_"It does not matter, Aknadin! Your son refuses to join with me, therefore he deserves to die!"_

"No matter what happens, we won't heed to the likes of you!" Mana glared, pointing her staff at Zorc.

_"How brave, girl! I will make your death a quick one as your reward!"_

_"No please, I want the_ slow and torturous_ death."_

Zorc began to conjure up darkness in his hand and pointed it toward Yugi and the gang. Everyone gasped in fear, knowing that this was only a countdown to their death. Yugi felt fear deep in his gut and prayed that there would be some miracle, someone that could help him. There didn't seem to be anything that could possibly help him at this dire moment. Yugi and Ryou held onto each other as they awaited the attack that was heading their way.

* * *

Inside the Domino Museum, Yugi was still sitting on a table across from Yami Ryou playing _Millennium World_. Yugi was being held down by the Tenma brothers, who were being controlled by Yami Ryou since the start of this game. He had already gathered the seven millennium item cards and summoned Zorc. Yugi was desperate to say his next move. If his avatar was killed, the game would be over and he'd lose the Shadow Game.

"Zorc attacks!" Yami Ryou declared with a sinister voice.

"Wait! _Seth!_ If Zorc attacks, Aknadin will stop him, whether he's controlled or not!" Yugi said with determined eyes.

"Very good, but that does not matter. Zorc controls Aknadin, so his darkness will keep him from stopping the all powerful demon! Of course, you _could_ give me Seth's card and I might prevent my attack."

"NO! Seth gave his life to protect me 3000 years ago! I won't betray him!"

"Noble, very noble. It's just too bad it all must end in vain!" Yami Ryou smirked before Yugi glared at the board, trying to find a desperate move to play.

Zorc made his attack on Yugi, his priests, and friends, about to wipe all of them just when a bright light shone, blocking the attack. Yami Ryou gasped as he saw what looked to be like a powerful ancient warrior with a golden head. This warrior used his magic to protect Yugi and company. Yami Ryou's eyes widened and a gasp left his lips. _Who was this character and _who_ was controlling him?_

"What is the meaning of this?" Yami Ryou asked demandedly as Yugi smirked.

"When you sent my friends' souls inside the game, you also sent our guide. I knew from the start there was more to him than a fat belly," Yugi smirked in reply as Yami Ryou glared deeply at him.

"You mean to tell me that fat behemoth controls _magic_!?"

"He's not just a _fat behemoth_, he's an ally of mine I met at the museum a year ago. By saying his name, I was able to ask for his help."

"Who?"

_"Shadi."_

"That damn SON OF A BITCH!" Yami Ryou yelled, banging his fists on the table. "I am going to kill you and that f***ing bastard if it's the last thing I do!"

"Then bring it!" Yugi smirked. He sighed, relieved that he was right about Bobossa being Shadi in disguise. He used his millennium key to trick the minds of Yugi and his friends. It was only through seeing through the magic that he was able to know the answer.

Shadi's tests in the past weren't just tests against Yugi, but tests against the millennium items. The adventures he faced were practice, training. Yugi was being trained for this very Shadow Game, so that he may have the will and ability to know the weaknesses of each item. It was partly why Shadi gave Pegasus the millennium eye and why Marik could possess the millennium rod under his mental condition. Shadi could've stopped either of the two from doing what they did, but Yugi _had_ to be tested for his battle against the demon Zorc. This was the moment of truth to free his friends and the Tenma brothers or all would be lost.


	27. The End of the World!

**Here it is guys! Sorry for taking a while, I was busy creating a title for my 100****th**** fan fiction I will be writing. Can you believe it? I'm almost at my 100****th**** fan fiction I've written! It will be my last DP fan fiction I will ever do. I hope you guys wish me the best of luck. Review please!**

Atem and his friends were walking on their way to the Valley of the Kings, which was still very far away. The guards were walking, for what seemed to be like, miles and miles of sand. Arriving to Yugi's tomb proved to be harder than the gang expected. Their legs were hurting, they were tired, and it was very VERY hot. The only positive side was that Joey wasn't around to complain for hours on end. That wasn't to say the same for Tristan.

"Ugh! Are we there yet?" Tristan complained.

"What are you, five?" Seto glared.

"Relax, we'll be there! You'll see!" Atem said, trying to hold his friends' spirits up.

"I wish I had my necklace to tell me the precise time of arrival," Serenity sighed, placing her hand at the area the millennium necklace used to be.

"Don't give up hope, Serenity. You seem to be doing great without it so far!" Tea cheered up her friend as Serenity smiled in reply.

"And, now that I think about it, Atem seems to be doing fine without Yugi as well," Tristan pointed out as Atem looked back with two of his eyebrows raised, then looked ahead with a sigh escaping his lips.

"I wish the same can be said for me. I miss Yugi alot!" Hanaski said, looking back behind him.

Suddenly, Bobosa stopped. Everyone stopped at the same time and looked at him. They all gasped, staring at his body and chest, which were glowing the shapes of the millennium item holes. The glow was so bright, it almost engulfed Bobosa.

"_He_ has come. Zorc has risen from his slumber," Bobosa said, his eyes glowing gold.

"Hey, isn't he the guy in the sky that claimed to be the devil?" Tristan asked.

"Technically speaking, he's _not_ the devil. He's actually a demon."

_"Yes, totally _not_ devil related,"_ Ryan said sarcastically.

"It is my duty to protect the stone tablet and all millennium items. This light is a sign that all the millennium items have been restored to the stone. This means Zorc has risen."

"What should we do?" Hanaski asked fearfully as shadows began to surround Bobosa and he transformed into some sort of strong and powerful being with a golden mask and a cape. Everyone gasped in pure shock.

_"I am now Hasan! Go to the tomb. The guards will show you the way. I must protect the Pharaoh, now that Zorc has finally risen!"_ Hasan replied, then took off to the sky toward the village Kul Elna.

"Since when can he fly?" Ryan asked with glaring eyes.

"Well, we did land from _who knows how many feet up in the sky_ and landed down here without a scratch. Maybe we can fly!" Tristan concluded, then jumped into the air, trying to fly, before landing on his front with a hard thug. _"Or... maybe not. Ow!"_

"Congratulations, you just won the most pathetic idiot award," Seto smirked sarcastically, clapping his hands in applaud.

"You're full of crap, you know that?" Tristan yelled, wiping the dirt off his face.

"Co'mon guys, this isn't Dragon Ball!" Atem said as everyone kept walking.

"Really? Because I can swear that was Mr. Popo that just flew out of our group!"

_"I'm going to pretend I didn't just hear that,"_ Atem said, showing an annoyed look.

"Let's just get to the stupid tomb already. I'm getting hot!" Seto complained, wiping the sweat from his brow.

Everyone continued to follow the guards toward the tomb, which was not too far away from where they were at.

* * *

Yugi and Ryou continually held onto each other, eyes closed and waiting for the attack to end their existence already. Though, before the attack could hit them, some powerful being came between Zorc and the others, blocking the attack from commencing. Yugi gasped, looking up to see a powerful warrior with a cape, a gold mask, and man's skirt. He seemed very powerful and strong, willing to protect everyone with his life.

"WHAT? HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE!? WHO ARE YOU!?" Zorc asked in shock.

_"I'm Hasan,"_ Hasan replied, his shield protecting Yugi and his friends from the onslaught before the smoke cleared. _"I'm the protector of the stone tablet."_

"Thanks for saving me, Hasan," Yugi thanked his protector.

_"I will protect you with my life, Pharaoh. It is my duty. I am the light of this world, while Zorc is of the darkness."_

"I thought you were Shadi."

_"It's complicated."_

"You think a mere spirit can stand against Zorc, ruler of the Underworld!?" Zorc asked rhetorically.

"I thought you were the devil," Yugi said.

"For the last time, I am not the-"

"You have horns like the devil, you came from the earth like the devil, you're the f***ing devil," Yugi corrected in a bored manner.

_"Technically speaking, your majesty, he's a demon or... well some sort of _fiend_,"_ Hasan explained.

"Why is it that devil has to be censored into some other creature? This is as bogus as Mafisto. IT'S THE F***ING DEVIL!"

_"How dare you!"_ Zorc yelled before sending off another powerful attack at Yugi and his friends before Hasan defended them with another shield.

"How can I defeat this guy? We're very weak at this point," Yugi asked.

_"Do not worry, my king. Your friends are on their way to retrieve your real name as we speak,"_ Hasan assured.

"Are they?" Yugi asked with hope in his eyes.

_"They are."_

"Don't get your hopes up! Even if your friends do make it to your tomb, I still have a hidden spy to keep them _busy_ for a while," Zorc smirked as Yugi glared at him, not showing any fear. "Don't worry, you can join with them as soon as I destroy you!"

Zorc's power in his blast began powering up even more and sent Hasan flying across the room. Yugi ran to his protector, trying to help him up. Zorc and Aknadin glared in pure annoyance as Hasan got up on his feet, still weakened by the attack. Yugi looked up at Hasan with worrying eyes.

"Are you okay?" Yugi asked.

_"I am fine, Pharaoh,"_ Hasan promised, huffing and puffing. _"I shall... protect you until the end... that is my duty... the will of your father Pharaoh Aknamkanon."_

"My father?"

_"Before your father died, he sealed a piece of my soul into the stone tablet, dying by the souls of Kul Elna, so that you may have a chance to defeat Zorc. He knew that, due to the amount of souls here and his brother's betrayal, Zorc would rise once more."_

"Is that why my father came here? It was to protect Egypt? To protect _me_?"

_"He also predicted this would be hard for you, though he didn't predict you would seal your own soul into the puzzle. He continually wishes it was his soul in that puzzle and not yours."_

Yugi felt sorrowful for his father in the Underworld. He was probably waiting for his son to return, only to discover that Yugi's soul would be in the world of the living for 3000 more years. Yugi wished he could be there to comfort his father and tell him that everything was going to be okay. Though now, he must defeat Zorc or Egypt was doomed.

"If you are able to withstand my attack, you must not be from this world!" Zorc declared. "You must be from the other world."

"HA! I KNEW IT! This is like Dragon Ball Z! There is an Other World!" Yugi said aloud as Ryou stared at him with blinking eyes.

"Did I miss something?" Ryou asked.

"I am sick of you, Yugi! Aknadin, I want you to destroy this pest once and for all!" Zorc commanded.

"You're a fool, to think you are like a god to the people of Kemet, holding the three gods, and you have yet to experience the power of true darkness!" Aknadin glared as he lifted his hands and dark electricity escaped from his fingers, electrocuting Yugi from the inside. He began screaming bloody murder from the attack, hurting him from the inside.

"That is enough!" Mahad shouted, shielding the attack from Yugi.

_"Thanks Mahad,"_ Yugi hoarsely thanked his magician.

"Don't worry Pharaoh, we're here!" Mana said as she helped her friend up. She glared at Seth, who still seemed to be still under Aknadin's control. "Seth, you have to snap out of it!"

_"It doesn't make sense, if the rod no longer has control over us, why is it still controlling Seth?"_ Yugi asked himself.

All the priests summoned their Ka's as Zorc laughed, stating, "You will crumble just like the land, you fools!"

"What's with you and being all talk and no fight? This is as ridiculous as the English dubbed version of Dragon Ball!" Yugi complained.

Suddenly, Zorc lifted his clawed hands and the earth began to shake. Everyone tried to gain their balance, but it seemed impossible. Yugi was just glad that there was _finally_ action now. Mahad and Mana joined their wands and began to send a huge dark energy at Zorc, but the attack didn't seem to make one scratch. Just then, he slammed his fist on the ground and everyone went flying across the room, leaving several bloody scratches.

Yugi looked to his right and found Shada was hit so hard, his Ba had finally run out. He gasped as Shada turned to dust.

_"No..."_ Yugi whimpered.

"Do you see how useless it is, Pharaoh?" Aknadin smirked evilly, putting one hand on Seth's shoulder.

"Why? Why are you doing this? Seth looked up to you! You were his father, master, and you betrayed him and all of us!"

"It is for the sake of Egypt and, for its sake, my son will rule over Egypt and I shall dominate the world."

"_To take over the world?_ That kinda seems stupid and cliché, don't cha think?" Yugi asked.

"SHUT UP! You can't defeat me, dear nephew!"

"Wanna bet, Scar?"

"Gladly. Rise up, army of the dead!" Aknadin commanded as undead zombies emerged from the ground in skeleton form and began attacking the Ka's and priests.

Yugi took out his sword, trying to kill each and every one of them. He started picturing that this was like _Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Perl_. The two magicians began destroying the undead creatures with their dark magic. The priests used their swords, as well as their Ka's, to destroy the fowl creatures. There just continually began growing a nonstopping army of them.

"Isis, Spirta alone cannot defeat these guys! You have to save your Ba!" Yugi warned.

"I know!" Isis stated, still fighting off the creatures with her sword, piercing the blade through one of them, then throwing it at ten of them at once.

Zorc began climbing himself out of the tunnel and into Kul Elna. Aknadin and Seth followed the demon lord, while the undead army kept Yugi and the other priests busy. Aknadin smirked in victorious satisfaction, knowing that they were all about to make known the rulers of the world. Zorc, though, decided to make Egypt the first burial for all the citizens of Egypt to hear the sounds of pain and misery of all that die and join his domain.

"I'm surprised that controlling my son was easy to do, after that hit, especially seeing how stubborn he can be after implanting," Aknadin smirked.

"You will be surprised how weak a frail human mind is when each one has a darkness of his own. I shall destroy Egypt and you can rule the rest of its domains!" Zorc said.

"You do that. I'm going to see if I can get my own son to be _obedient_," Aknadin said, glaring at Seth before taking his son into his arms and they both disappeared.


	28. Into the Tomb

**Hey guys! Here's more where this came from! Time for me to continue our story. This pretty much leads to the duel you've all been waiting for, but there's going to be a twist. Why? BECAUSE I SAID SO! Jk, actually, I just thought this would be something new to put here, since... the duel with Atem would not be as _memorable_ or be like an _upgrade_ to his character like it was with Yugi in the original cannon. Yugi was an anti-fighter, so him standing up to Bakura and dueling him was a sign that he's finally found the spirit to actually fight on his own without Yami's help. Atem's problem was _starting_ fights, so the duel is going to be changed for the better. I hope you guys understand where I'm coming from. I mean I'm even going to have to change the Ceremonial Duel because of this. Review please!**

The guards were in the Valley of the Kings, passing Yugi's tomb, which was being watched over until Yugi's rest. Atem and the others were tired and their legs were hurting at this point, but were relieved to have finally found the tomb. They knew it was Yugi's, since it was newer than all the other pyramids. Everyone, except for Seto and Atem, fell face forward on the sandy ground. Atem sighed, leaning against Yugi's tomb.

_"Looks like we finally made it,"_ Atem said exhausted, his cheeks hot red like his other friends.

"Looks like it! I had to take off my jacket and shirt off for this!" Seto complained, being seen in a white undershirt, his cheeks red, and sweat on his neck and face.

"Why'd you bring it along in the first place?" Atem teased with a smirk upon his lips.

"Hey, I didn't expect us to be in Egypt in the _desert_, otherwise I would've brought sunscreen and a t-shirt! If I came in my normal outfit, I wore in Battle City, I would be a complete dumbass wouldn't I!?"

"Not as much as Ryan would be if he came in a black trench coat or walk around in the desert in a skirt and a red robe like Santa Claus. It kinda makes it look like he doesn't even know he's in f***ing _Ancient Egypt_."

"I wouldn't wear either of those things if I was the last person on earth! You know damn well that I _don't_ wear trench coats!" Ryan shouted, his Die Hard t-shirt over his shoulder.

"Why not? Trench coats are sexy!"

"Let's just go inside the damn tomb before the sun kills me."

"Fair enough."

"Why do I feel like I'm in New Moon?" Tea wondered to herself.

"Because half of the boys here have their shirts off," Serenity replied, chuckling.

"Well, guess that'd be disappointing to all the fangirls! The only people with their shirts off is Ryan, Hanaski, and Joey, who's not even here," Atem smirked, walking inside the tomb.

"Hey, are you implying that just because I'm single means I'm not sexy?" Ryan asked offendedly.

"That's _exactly_ what I'm saying."

"I hate you."

The gang entered the tomb through a dark hallway with torches that lit up the room. There were hieroglyphs written along the walls of the hall. As the gang walked closer inside the tomb, the room began growing cooler. Serenity found the hieroglyphs very fascinating and trailed her fingers along the pictures on the wall. The rest of the gang also found the tomb fascinating.

"Man, if Joey were here, he'd probably be wetting himself," Tristan smirked, putting his shirt back on along with Hanaski.

"Isn't that insulting for the Egyptians?" Hanaski wondered.

"Probably. Mind if I take a number 1?" Ryan teased.

"I don't care, Yugi's not dead yet anyways," Atem said, looking ahead. "Besides that, we need less stress on our hands in order to find Yugi's name."

"He's got a point," Seto agreed.

"I can't help, but feel sorry for Yugi. He must've been so lonely in here. I'm surprised he didn't develop any sickness from being in here for 3,000 years," Tea said.

"If by sickness you mean touching me continuously, then yeah, there's definitely-" Atem said before stopping, slapping his forehead. "_God, I'm an idiot!_ I knew he was lonely and touchie, but I never could really grasp how _lonely_ he was in here... nobody to touch... only seeing death. All Yugi wanted was to be loved."

"Ryou was no different. I eventually got over the _anti touchie_ phase and let him use me as a teddy bear. Sharing the same body as he did, I've begun connecting to him, sharing the same wants he did... I suppose that's a better way to put it," Ryan confessed.

"I suppose it is. In the end it wasn't me that didn't want Yugi to leave, it was Yugi, who didn't want to leave and his emotions effected mine," Atem realized, placing his hand across his chest. "I was so unaffectionate back then... unsympathetic..."

"I was too!" Tea confessed. "I thought you were nothing, but a jackass that loved to bully others. In the end, it was _you_ that suffered and I was so blind by my own ambitions. I never stopped to think if maybe what you did was a cry for help and I never came to that cry..."

Atem stared at Tea in shock, not really disagreeing with her, because he was _suffering_. Him and Joey were both struggling with facing adulthood, they jumped into way too early, when they left home. They both suffered from gang abuse and rape as young kids and carried those dark memories. All Atem could say was, "Tea, I..."

"Hanaski heard that cry. He answered that cry and tried to help you and Joey the best he could. When you were at your lowest point, he chased after you... I never got the chance to apologize for being judgmental and blind. I'm glad I got to know you."

Atem smiled and gave Tea a warm hug. She smiled, then gave Atem a light punch on his shoulder. The gang could feel a warm and soft aura in the air. It was to turn to cool and intense when they entered a room that was a maze with statues that held a sword in each hand. Everyone gasped in pure horror as Serenity made a face.

"Um... this is a trap right? Are we gonna pull an _Indiana Jones_ or something?" Tristan asked.

"If that were true, I'd be Tony Stark," Seto smirked with folded arms.

"Um... hm... I could try to... RUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUN!" Atem screamed before running inside the maze like a mad man with all the statues swinging their swords after him.

"ATEM MOTO, ARE YOU F***ING INSANE!" Tea screamed.

_"He lost it,"_ Tristan muttered as the wall behind the gang showed spikes, slowly creeping up to them. "_Oh shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiit._ This really is like_ Indiana Jones_!"

"Let's get a move on!" Seto cried out as the whole gang ran through the maze, avoiding the swords from cutting them _Benny Hill_ style. Hanaski was especially screaming during the whole chase.

Atem was the first one to make it to the other side by sliding right under one of the swords like he was trying to make a Home Run. Tea was screaming while making it to the end on time, then slapped Atem across the face.

"DON'T _ever_ do that again!" Tea screamed.

_"I DON'T WANNA DIE! I DON'T WANNA DIE!"_ Tristan whined while finally making it to the other side, followed by Seto Kaiba, who stole a sword from one of the statues, clashing it with the sword of the statue before making his way to the other side.

"If this is your way of gaining Yugi's memories, then we're seriously f***ed!" Seto glared.

"I couldn't think of any other plan!" Atem responded, shrugging.

Hanaski screamed while running from a statue that was right behind him before running into Atem and both of them falling over and saying, "ow!"

"Remind me to kill you, you f***ing moron!" Ryan shouted while running, then jumping over the statue chasing Hanaski, before making it to the other side.

Serenity was still trying to avoid attack from the statues. She had almost made it to the end, but the statue, who was chasing Hanaski, came toward her, about to dice her with its two swords. Everyone gasped, more sweat pouring. The statue blocked the only pathway for Serenity to make it to the other side. There was just _no way_ for her to make it.

Serenity stopped, spotting another statue from behind gaining closer to her along the narrow path. Suddenly, she ran right toward the statue ahead of her, moved away from the first slash of the sword on the right, then jumped right on that hand before climbing on the shoulder and jumping right over the statue to run on her way to the other side as the two statues slashed their swords against each other, cutting each other in pieces by the time Serenity made it to the gang.

Everyone's jaws dropped to the floor as soon as Serenity made it to their side. She grabbed her knees, breathing hardly in and out, her heart pumping fast against her chest like a drum.

_"What?"_ Serenity asked.

"Since when did you pull off badass moves?" Tristan asked frantically.

"Hm... I have no idea," Serenity shrugged and everyone made a facepalm.

"Well, it was about time she did pull off something like that," Atem shrugged as everyone sighed.

"Don't EVER do that again!" Seto glared as Atem rolled his eyes.

"Whatever. I still say that was fun," Atem argued.

"If you keep this up with us running like that, it's going to be the death of someone!" Tea rebuked.

"_I hope we don't end up in anymore traps!_ I wish to live," Tristan whined.

"Stop your whining! I'll make sure Mr. _Dumbass_ doesn't pull another move like that!" Seto said while they walked over to the next room, finding Atem already on the other side of a smaller bridge with stoned tablets of monsters on the bottom leading to a platform that was set up like a small table. Everyone glared intensely at Atem.

"_What?_ There's no trap in here!" Atem said.

_"You're impossible,"_ Tea sighed before everyone walked across the bridge. There was a large door in the way that led to the room where Yugi's name supposedly is located.

"So... is there a secret button to press or something?" Hanaski wondered.

"Try stepping on the floor to find a-" Tristan suggested before Atem loudly yawned.

"I'm bored!" Atem said, then snatched the sword, Seto had taken from the statues in the other room, and hit the pointy end against the crack of the double door as sand began to leak out. Atem kept slamming and slamming the sword's pointy end against the crack until he made a small hole, then made the hole bigger. He put two hands through the hole and pulled the door open, along with Seto's help, until there was a gap big enough for one person to walk through.

"Or... that could... work," Tristan muttered.

Atem walked through the open door, then noticed someone else was behind the darkness. He glared intensely as his friends made it to the inside of the room and shouted, "WHO ARE YOU!? SHOW YOURSELF!"

_"Very well,"_ replied a very familiar voice, who appeared from the shadows to reveal himself as non other than... Gekko Tenma?


	29. Fight in the Tomb

**Here's more from this story. Didn't expect the Tenma brothers... or brother... to be part of this did ya? This was my way of getting rid of the confusing three Bakura thing, since I'm still trying to wrap that around my mind. I also highly advise you to check out my new fan fiction Switcheroo, which is a Parent Trap based Yu-Gi-Oh. Review please!**

Atem stood his ground, eyes glaring, as Gekko showed a very sadistic smirk. His eyes seemed to be hallow, as if he was a puppet. The rest of the gang showed their exchange of glares as well. Atem couldn't figure this out in his head! Why is Gekko working for_ Yami Ryou_? It didn't make any sense!

_"Glad that you finally came, Atem. It took a while,"_ Gekko smirked.

Atem looked up and saw the large golden cartouche with symbols inside the huge oval. He couldn't understand what it meant, but he knew it was Yugi's real name. The main problem was knowing WHAT his real name was. Atem couldn't read any of this! It was like reading English!

"So... what does this say?" Tristan asked.

"That's easy, bird, basket, feather, another basket, and two more feathers. It's two bird feather baskets," Atem replied with a smirk on his lips as his friends gave him funny looks. "What am I, a dead language scholar? I don't know any of this shit!"

_"You poor thing. I, on the other hand, can read this handwriting quite well. After all, I once lived during this time period,"_ Possessed Gekko smirked as Atem glared even deeper.

"You're not Gekko Tenma at all! You're the spirit!" Atem shouted.

_"Ding, ding, ding! Give the vessel a round of applause,"_ Possessed Gekko mocked, clapping his heads before putting them down._ "I decided to make these little troublemakers useful and make them pieces to my game. I control them however I want them and make them go wherever I want them to go like everything else here."_

"Why don't cha face me like a man?"

_"I would, but I've got better things to do outside of this tomb, so until then, I'll use Gekko to block you. If you ever wish to escape alive, you will have to play a Shadow Game against me,"_ Possessed Gekko challenged, pulling out his duel disk and strapping it to his arm. He took out another duel disk and tossed it to Atem. _"Are you up for it?"_

"I-" Atem was about to accept until Hanaski stepped in front, snatching the duel disk from Atem and placing it on his arm.

"I'm up for it, you coward!" Hanaski shouted with glaring eyes.

Gekko laughed aloud insultingly, asking, _"is this some kind of a joke?"_

"Hanaski, what are you doing?" Atem asked, slightly annoyed and mad at the same time.

"I may have not taken language classes on Ancient Egypt, but I know what that says! I remember the Ancient Egyptian basic alphabet like the back of my hand and I can spell out what that says. I think it's fair if _I_ duel," Hanaski said.

"Wait, you can _read_ that shit?" Tristan asked with furrowed eyebrows.

"It's just basic letters of the alphabet in Ancient Egyptian. I know what each of them say which letter. I remember memorizing it for extra credit in Elementary School. I would play a song in my head after them. Let me duel!" Hanaski begged.

"But you're only a Novice!"

"Once was! I leveled up to Expert just about a month ago."

"I think I know how we can settle this," Atem smirked as he walked to Hanaski, who smiled, then nodded.

They then pounded their fist on the other hand, shouting, _"One! Two! Three! Rock! Paper! Scissors! Shoot!"_ Hanaski and Atem showed flat hands for paper. _"Rock! Paper! Scissors!"_ They both then showed balled up fists. _"Rock! Paper! Scissors!"_ They both showed flat hands for paper again.

Possessed Gekko, Seto, Tristan, and Tea showed blank and widened eyes at the scene of Atem and Hanaski playing Rock-Paper-Scissors. Their jaws were just close to dropping. This was one of the biggest shocking and random moment they've ever seen in their lives.

"What the hell am I seeing?" Seto asked with a bizarre look on his face.

"It's just like that episode of Dragon Ball Z where Gohan, Goku, and Vegeta just played Rock-Paper-Scissors to see who would fight who right the f*** out of nowhere," Tristan blurted out.

"I thought that was the Ginyu Force," Tea said.

"It was them and Goku and Vegeta during the final battle scene."

"WOULD YOU HURRY IT UP ALREADY!?" Possessed Gekko shouted impatiently.

"WE'LL HURRY IT UP WHEN WE _HURRY IT UP_, MR. IMPATIENT! NOW, SHUT THE F*** UP OR WE'LL USE YOUR DUEL DISK AS A FRISBEE ON YOUR NECK!" Atem shouted as everyone flinched and Gekko's eyes widened.

_"Rock! Paper! Scissors!"_ Atem and Hanaski shouted at the same time before Atem showed a flat hand and Hanaski showed a peace sign.

"YAY! Scissors beats Paper!" Hanaski cried in glee, jumping up and down.

"You did win. Go kick his ass," Atem encouraged Hanaski with a thumbs up, backing up and joining with his friends.

"That was a complete waste of time. I should cut your salary for that," Seto glared in pure annoyance as Atem smirked in response.

_"Very well. I suppose I'll let the puny brat duel against me. This shouldn't be hard,"_ Possessed Gekko smirked confidently.

"Don't you be so sure," Hanaski warned Possessed Gekko, turning on his duel disk.

_"Just to clarify to you, what you're dealing with is a Shadow Game and our life points will be connected to our actual life. In other words, the loser dies and you feel the pain when hit directly,"_ Possessed Gekko mentioned as Hanaski furrowed his eyebrows even deeper.

"I figured. Let's do this!"

_"Very well."_

"Hanaski, you don't have to do this!" Tea cried out.

"Tea, no offense, but shut up," Atem said as Tea shot him a glare. "_'Hanaski, you don't have to do this!'_? You don't have a choice to leave after a Shadow Game starts and that's already been established_ how many times before?_ I would think you would know about that by now."

"... oh."

Hanaski and Possessed Gekko shoved their decks into their duel disks, and then shuffled them. After that, they drew out five cards and begun their duel. Hanaski was to go first, so he drew his first card. He looked through his hand to decide what move to play.

"I'll start by placing one card face-down, then summoning out Marshmellon in defense mode. I end my turn!" Hanaski declared.

"You have _Marshmellon_?" Tristan asked.

"Uh... it seemed like a good card. Yugi told me I should try using other monsters with my Elemental HERO's and I was looking around. Almost _everyone_ wanted it, so I bought it," Hanaski shrugged.

"Were they female?"

"Yeah, why?"

Everyone, except for Atem, all shared a round of facepalms. Hanaski stood nervously on the field, knowing he must've done _something_ wrong before Atem cried out, "it's okay Hanaski, you're doing great!"

"You think so?"

"I know so! Even a weak monster has its strengths. You can ask Seto," Atem said, smirking while elbowing Seto, who shot him an annoyed glare.

_"Okay,"_ Hanaski replied, looking at the field.

_"My turn!"_ Possessed Gekko said, drawing his next card, looking at his hand._ "I summon Doomcaliber Knight in attack mode!"_ A skeleton-like knight in armor with a purple cape on a black horse appeared on the field, a sharp sword in its hand._ "Attack that weak marshmallow!"_ Doomcaliber Knight began charging right after Hanaski's monster as the kid stood his ground, showing no fear on his face.

_"I knew having him duel was a bad idea!"_ Tristan cried in a whiny tone.

"Cut the crap, Hanaski knows what he's doing," Atem said as everyone looked at him, who showed a firm look on his face.

Doomcaliber Knight slashed its sword through Marshmellon, cutting it in half as it morphed back to its normal state. Everyone gasped as Atem showed a deep smirk across his lips. He knew this monster very well; after all Serenity was eying on that card as well. It was a monster like Revival Jam, it _couldn't_ be destroyed by an attack from monsters. Possessed Gekko glared in pure annoyance and confusion.

"You can't destroy Marshmellon with a sword, Gekko! That's too bad really," Hanaski stated as Possessed Gekko glared deeply in response.

"Nice play, Hanaski!" Tea cheered, clapping her hands.

"Not bad. Looks like he's gotten stronger since the last I've seen him duel," Seto smirked, then eying Atem. "I can see why you hold strong confidence in him."

"Him and Yugi have been dueling often, so Hanaski's got some skills up his sleeves," Atem explained as Seto nodded.

_"I set one card face-down and end my turn!"_ Possessed Gekko ended before Hanaski drew his next card.

"I play one card face-down, then I summon Elemental HERO Heat in attack mode! I end my turn!" Hanaski declared as a strong white warrior in bright red and yellow armor appeared on the field in an attack position.

_"Well, isn't that cute? It seems you're already luring me to attack,"_ Possessed Gekko smirked before drawing his next card. _"I play Trap Amulet and equip it onto my Doomcaliber Knight! Now, it can't be targeted by traps and my Knight attacks your HERO!"_

Doomcaliber Knight began charging toward Elemental HERO Heat as Hanaski smirked, "it's too bad I wasn't going to activate any trap cards. My first spell card I'll activate is Marshmellon Glasses! These will make the monster, equipped to this card, only attack Marshmellon and I choose to equip this baby to your Doomcaliber Knight!" Hanaski declared as little play sunglasses with a picture of Marshmellon on each lens appeared on Doomcaliber Knight's face. Possessed Gekko glared in pure annoyance as his monster attacked Marshmellon again and it morphed back into its original form.

_"You little _brat_! I place one card face-down and end my turn!"_ Possessed Gekko growled.

"You know, I noticed that Gekko isn't using his normal deck," Tea clarified.

"_No duh._ He's using Ryan's _new_ deck," Atem said, rolling his eyes. "Since the Wicked god cards are gone, I doubt if the spirit is interested in Gekko's Elf deck."

_"Not to mention he didn't bring his deck along,"_ Possessed Gekko added.

"Um... that too."

"Okay, my turn!" Hanaski declared, drawing his next card as he looked through his hand. "First, I'll place one card face-down, then for my battle phase..."

_"Stop right there! The moment you enter Battle Phase, I reveal this..."_ Possessed Gekko smirked, revealing his trap card. _"Call of the Earthbound! This forces one of your monsters, I choose, to attack and I choose your Heat HERO!"_

"Oh shit!" Tristan spouted out as Elemental HERO Heat flew right toward Doomcaliber Knight.

_"I also reveal my second trap, Zoma the Spirit, to special summon my Zoma!"_ Possessed Gekko declared as he revealed his trap card and a huge skeleton dragon with boned wings appeared on the field in a defensive position.

"This is probably gonna hurt," Tristan said with widened eyes.

"If he's a true duelist, he'll get himself out of this mess," Seto declared as Tea bit her bottom lip. Atem stood with his arms folded and held a firm face.

Elemental HERO Heat punched Zoma with an upper cut as it burst from the field. Hanaski knew this monster's _ability_, as did the rest of his friends. Possessed Gekko smirked even deeper as a ghost-like monster appeared from his duel disk and spouted on its way to Hanaski's life points.

_"Hope you like pain, because this has 3000 of it,"_ Possessed Gekko smirked as Hanaski glared and activated his trap card.

"I play Hero Barrier! If I control one Elemental HERO on the field, I negate your attack!" Hanaski declared as the spirit disappeared before hitting his life points. Possessed Gekko glared even more. "But that's not all! I also activate Get Your Game on! This doubles the attack of my Elemental HERO's!" His spell card was activated and Elemental HERO Heat's attack points rose to 3200 as Possessed Gekko's eyes widened. "Now, Heat attacks your Knight!" Elemental HERO Heat punched Doomcaliber Knight in the gut and it disappeared, leaving Possessed Gekko with 2700 life points remaining.

"Great job, Hanaski!" Tristan cried out.

"I take it back, Hanaski has gotten _ten times stronger_ than the last I've seen him duel," Seto said.

"Hanaski has developed a bone in his body since meeting Yugi," Atem smirked, remembering Hanaski's development from the nerdy Zombire fanboy to a strong protector of Yugi.


	30. Ghosts Enter the Field

**Here is the next chapter. I guess some of you are wondering why I picked Hanaski instead of Atem to duel Gekko Tenma and how it effects character development. The truth is, Hanaski's character is supposed to be somewhat parallel to Yugi's personality from the original manga, only playing the supporting character. Hanaski learning to be brave and kind of a fighter. In the end, it's all about him learning to find confidence in himself in being his own hero, which is the main reason why I like Yugioh chapter American Hero. The only thing I wish is that he became a major character and the story went a little deeper into Hanaski's character, despite the Smurfette Principle issue (it can be done right and just letting Tea be there is better than adding Miho). Review please!**

Hanaski continued his turn, looking through his hand and declared, "Now, my Marshmellon attacks you directly!" and Marshmellon shot out to Gekko and it's mouth opened, showing its razor sharp teeth, biting Possessed Gekko. He screamed aloud as his life points stooped down to 2400.

_"You little shit,"_ Possessed Gekko seethed through his teeth.

"Awesome Hanaski!" Tristan cheered aloud.

"Don't celebrate just yet. This is the _other_ Ryou you're talking and he had lower life points, when he dueled against Atem, before things got rough. Don't underestimate him," Seto warned with a stern expression.

"He's right! You may celebrate just for your little _fun_, but I will have my fun as you bleed to your death," Possessed Gekko smirked as he drew his next card.

"Don't you think that's kinda gross?" Hanaski asked.

_"Shut up!"_ Possessed Gekko snapped, looking at his hand. "I play Cursed Twin Dolls!" Two look-alike dolls with short wavy blond hair and a short dress. The only difference is that one's dress and bow was pink and the other one's was blue. They both carried two separate boxes. The box the pink-dressed doll was holding was black and the box the blue-dressed doll was holding was red.

"What are those things?" Ryan wondered.

"The card looks familiar, but I can't remember what it does," Atem said with furrowed eyebrows.

"These dolls carry a box. One box gives life, while the other one is a curse. You must choose one of these boxes, dear Hanaski, but choose wisely," Possessed Gekko explained with a huge grin on his face.

Hanaski looked at the red box, then the black box, his eyes furrowed deeply and sweat pouring on the back of his neck. He decided, "I choose the red box."

"Then, I will have the black box," Posessed Gekko replied as the doll with the red box opened it and white smoke appeared and surrounded Hanaski. "Good choice, by the way, this box gives you 200 life points for each card that is sent to either of our graveyards. The bad news is that the curse I get _destroys_ my graveyard, so you can't gain any life points on how many cards that are supposed to be sent to the graveyard." The doll with the black box opened it and red smoke appeared and surrounded Possessed Gekko and all the spirits, of his monsters in his graveyard, appeared above him in smoky bubbles. At the same time, Possessed Gekko also retrieved all his cards from his graveyard. "Without a graveyard, my monsters return to me as ghosts and my trap and spell cards return to me as well." He placed his spell and trap cards in his hand and the rest in his graveyard slot, being used as _extra slots_ for the monster card zone. "Though, don't worry, as ghosts they cannot attack or defend. I place one card face-down, then summon this monster on the field." A toy soldier appeared on the field with a gun, a sword, and a crazy doll look on his face like from a horror movie.

"It's my turn," Hanaski declared, drawing his next card.

_"What is he up to?"_ Atem wondered quietly, rubbing his chin.

"Beats me. I have a bad feeling about this setup. It's almost like he _wanted_ that curse," Ryan thought.

"You think we should tell-" Serenity asked before being cut off.

"No Serena, I think he already knows," Atem said, furrowing his eyebrows.

"My Necro Soldier's special ability activates, if there's one Necro Soldier on the field, during my opponent's standby phase, another Necro Soldier appears," Possessed Gekko said as another Neco Soldier appeared next to the current one, both in defense mode.

"Okay then..." Hanaski said, looking at the field, then his cards. "I summon Elemental HERO Burstinatrix!" A warrior woman with long black hair with red patterns on it appeared on the field with fists of fire. "Now, Burstinatrix and Marshmellon attack your soldiers and Heat attacks you directly!" Elemental HERO Burstinatrix and Marshmellon destroyed the two Necro Soldiers, the woman hero monster punching one soldier with her flaming fist and Marshmellon biting the other one in two. Elemental HERO Heat then made his way to Possessed Gekko when...

"I activate my trap card, Narrow Corridor. If you have three monsters on the field, the third attack is negated," Possessed Gekko declared, activating his trap card as Hanaski nodded his head.

"I end my turn."

_"Ugh, so close!"_ Tristan whined.

"Well, the son of a bitch is a tough opponent, what did you expect?" Seto asked with a smirk upon his lips.

"It doesn't matter! We have to believe in Hanaski! I just know he will pull through!" Tea clarified aloud.

"Do you even realize how _stupid_ that sounds!? It's like you're trying to smack us in the face of the most _obvious_ thing that we know! We get it, _we need to cheer for Hanaski _and here we are _cheering for Hanaski_! What's next? Are you going to narrate every single movement we make or thing we do like _Teletubbies_?"

_"It's almost like we're in a children's show," _Seto thought aloud sarcastically as the ground shook, probably from the monster Zorc's attack from outside, one of the four walls broke into pieces with the tomb still standing. "Okay... that was weird."

"I believe it's my turn!" Possessed Gekko smirked as he drew his next card. "I activate my spell card Counterbalance, with this card we have to discard as many cards as there are monsters on the field, including the ghost monsters on my field, during every End Phase."

"Holy crap!" Tristan responded.

"Okay... Hanaski's in a bit of dilemma. He's facing a Lockdown deck," Atem realized.

_"Oh... crap,"_ Hanaski responded with sweat dripping from his face.

"Uh... what's a Lockdown deck?" Tea asked.

"It's a deck that defeats its opponent by emptying their deck. If the opponent isn't careful, he could lose all his cards and automatically lose the game before his life points hit zero."

"You mean there's a type of deck that can do that?"

"Yep. In fact, I beat Seto several times with a Lockdown of my own," Atem smirked, nudging at Seto, who glared in response.

"Wait, the card also effects the dark spirit as well."

"Not _entirely_, because he doesn't have a graveyard, so he still gets to keep his cards he'd normally throw in the graveyard. This means Hanaski is in _huge_ trouble, unless he can get himself back in gear."

"I also summon Necro Mannequin in defense mode!" Possessed Gekko declared as a mutated doll, which looked like a Barbie doll that was broken into pieces and glued by a psycho three-year-old, appeared on the field in a defense position.

"That doll is more disturbing than half of Sid's toys from _Toy Story_," Tristan blurted aloud with widened eyes.

"Even more so than a baby head with spider legs and a fishing pole with Barbie doll legs?" Ryan asked in a teasing manner.

"Yep, even more than those."

"That ends my turn and, as you enter your standby phase, Necro Soldier's ability activates, since it's a ghost on my field and not in my graveyard," Possessed Gekko said as a Necro Soldier appeared on his field.

Hanaski drew his next card and looked at his hand. He knew he was in a dilemma and needed to find a way to defeat Possessed Gekko before all his cards disappear from his deck. If Hanaski summoned another monster, there would be more cards for him to discard and empty his deck. Winning seemed to be impossible as long as his cards would become less and less. He had to come up with a solution _somehow_.

There was one idea of using Polymerization and lessening his monsters, but he didn't have the card. For now, he was going to nave to _not_ summon monsters.

"First, I'll attack your two monsters with Heat and Burstinatrix!" Hanaski declared as Elemental HERO Heat used is sword and cut the mutated doll in two, bursting it from the field, before Elemental HERO Burstinatrix punched Necro Soldier in the gut and it also burst from the field. Both dead monsters appeared in the smokey bubble before Hanaski gasped and saw ten more of the mutated doll monsters.

"Before you attacked, I used the spell card Multiply on Necro Mannequin," Possessed Gekko smirked, revealing his spell card.

_"Oh f***,"_ Atem responded with widened eyes.

_"I... guess that ends my turn,"_ Hanaski said quietly as he discarded 15 cards in his graveyard and his life points rose to 7200.

"This is f***ed up! By next turn, Hanaski's a goner!" Tristan responded.

"My turn!" Possessed Gekko smirked as he grew his next card. "I summon Necroface in defense mode and end my turn. This will be your last turn, so make it count!"

Hanaski stared at his deck, almost making tearful eyes. By the next turn, he will lose all his cards unless he draws the right card, but getting the right card was just a slim chance. There seemed to be _no way_ for him to draw it. If it were just a regular game, he would just declare his opponent the winner and surrender, place his hand on the deck or duel disk. Though, this wasn't just a regular duel, this was a Shadow Game. Losing wasn't _no big deal_ anymore now. Hanaski kept thinking to himself,_ 'what was I thinking getting myself into this? I'm a weak coward that was only a hero in my bedroom as Zombire.'_

That's when Hanaski began looking back at the time he coseplayed as Zombire with Yugi in the past time and time again. Atem would make fun of Hanaski for being so _nerdy_. _How long had it been since the last time he coseplayed, read a comic book of Zombire, or even talked about the comic?_ He didn't even know if Zombire ever did defeat the living dead. It had been so long and he had been so busy trying out new ways to win Duel Monsters, too busy helping Yugi on his adventures. Something had changed and Hanaski couldn't explain how.

It was Yugi and Atem that changed Hanaski. Yugi stood out there against his foes and fought them head on no matter the cost. Atem did the same for Yugi. All Hanaski did was stay on the sidelines, fearing of losing his closest friend he ever made. The only guy who would always laugh and smile at everything he did. He's been wanting to be like Yugi for years, but could never reach that level. He then remembered something Atem told his father long ago, _"He's my hero and always will be. He's the strongest person I know and not by his _brutality_..."_ Hanaski learned that day that being a hero didn't always mean fighting or being strong like Zombire. Maybe that's why he grew out of the comic; it was just too _fake_.

That being said, Hanaski still didn't completely understand what it meant to be _a hero_, what else it took to reach that level. He looked out on the field, seeing Possessed Gekko facing him with that psychotic and fearsome look on his face. Perhaps being a hero means facing those, Hanaski would normally stay away from, for the sake of others. He would give his life for his friends and, if that's what it took to be a hero, then it was time a new kind of hero was made; one that never gives up and faces the outcome.

Hanaski drew his next card, a face of courage on his face. Possessed Gekko smirked and chuckled a bit.

"That's right Hanaski, you can do it!" Atem shouted as Seto stood with folded arms and a stern face.

Hanaski looked at the card he drew and... he began to show what seemed to be like sobs.

"Poor little-" Possessed Gekko mocked before hearing the loudest laughter from Hanaski anyone had ever heard. Everyone jumped by the sound of it as Hanaski rolled on the floor in laughter, holding the card he drew in his hand._ "What the hell is so funny!?"_

_"I... wanted to draw Polymerization and forgot I had this card in my hand and..."_ Hanaski replied, then laughed again, so hard tears came out of his eyes.

"Oh, I _gotta_ see this!" Atem smirked as Hanaski showed him and the rest of the gang the card he drew and they all busted out laughing, including Seto.

_"Oh shit! Oh shit, I hate that card!"_ Ryan laughed.

"WILL YOU PLEASE TELL ME WHAT'S SO F***ING HILARIOUS!?" Possessed Gekko yelled before Hanaski wiped his tears, then showed his card.

"I think that setup you used to destroy my deck is going to bite you in the ass. I play Burst Impact and it's game," Hanaski said, showing his card as Possessed Gekko stared at the card with widened eyes. "When Burstinatrix is on the field, all the monsters on both our fields are destroyed, including our life points by 300 per monster. Since you made me get rid of half my deck, I have 7200 life points, which only puts me down to 2400. Though, you only have 2400 life points remaining, meaning... well, you're pretty much f***ed up at this point. _I forgot I had this._"

"The worst part is that he just got pawned by a level 3 monster that's not even an effect type," Atem smirked.

"You... little-" Possessed Gekko said before Hanaski played Burst Impact and Elemental HERO Burstinatrix began to glow flaming fire around her, which spread over the entire field and destroying every monster on the field._ "SHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII IIIIIIIIIIIIT!"_ Possessed Gekko now had no life points remaining and began screaming on the top of his lungs and Gekko fainted, falling down on the floor face-down.

"Co'mon!" Hanaski cried as he took off his duel disk and ran to Gekko, turning his body and cleaning the blood off his mouth.

"Wake up, you son of a bitch!" Atem called out, slapping his hand across Gekko's cheek before Gekko moaned and opened his eyes, which were no longer hallow.

_"What the..."_ Gekko groaned, then looked at Ryan before he began charging toward him with the others pulling him back. "YOU KILLED MY FATHER YOU SON OF A-"

"It wasn't Ryan, you dumbass!" Seto cried out as Gekko looked back, his face all sweating. He panted, then looked at Ryan hard.

"Are you sure this is the _real_ Ryan?"

"Of course I'm Ryan, f***ing dumbass," Ryan replied harshly.

"You have the ring?"

_"No, I don't!"_ Ryan replied, still harshly, as Gekko looked at everyone, who nodded. This told him that this _Ryan_ was telling the truth.

"Then, I believe you," Gekko sighed in relief, dropping on his knees and covering his face with his full palm. "What happened and why is there a broken wall?"

"Long story short, we're trapped in some sort of game world of 3000 years ago and searching for Yugi's name inside his tomb, which is there, but it's in jibberish," Atem replied. "Hanaski says he can read it. As for the broken wall, we have no idea."

"_Doesn't surprise me._ Ancient names are spelled in Ancient Egyptian Alphabet. Even a fifth grader knows this, unless you hadn't been paying attention in school," Gekko smirked as Atem rolled his eyes.

"Though, I can't pronounce it right. _O-ki-ki?_" Hanaski wondered with furrowed eyebrows.

"It's _Akiiki_, the name means _friendly_. Can see why his name would be that, considering he's probably the friendliest guy you'll ever meet," Gekko smirked with folded arms.

Atem chuckled, "_Akiiki?_ Sounds like a girl's name if you ask me, like Kiki."

"Well, I like it!" Tea objected.

_"Of course you would,"_ Atem muttered under his breath, then chuckled again. _"Akiiki."_

Just then, the whole earth began to shake and the walls began to collapse. Everyone immediately ran from the falling rocks as fast as they could, dragging Gekko with them. Hanaski and Atem, being the two smallest people, ran ahead of the others. Hanaski couldn't stop thinking about Yugi and delivering his real name Akiiki. Atem knew he would definitely remember that name.

The maze statues broke and fell, giving the group time to escape freely as they made their way to the other side.

_"I DON'T WANNA DIE! I DON'T WANNA DIE!"_ Tristan whined.

"Quit complaining!" Tea snapped before her and Serenity ran ahead of Tristan, heading to the exit along with everyone else before the whole tomb collapsed on them.

**A/N: I did research the hieroglyph for the name Akiiki and it's pretty much something you can spell, if you know the basic Ancient Egyptian Alphabet. Though, to be technical, it was spelled like "Akikii," so you do the math. Atem's name, if you were to use the Ancient Egyptian Alphabet to translate the actual letters, even in the dub, it's "Atemu." I was worried about not spelling the name right, because Ancient Egyptian literature also includes on character that can mean a certain noun or something. Though, from what I researched, a name on a cartouche was spelled in the basic Ancient Egyptian letters you learn in Elementary school. **

**For those of you that were guessing Yugi's real name would be Haba or Atsu... yeah, I'm not that obvious. I was trying to find a name that began with Y, but there weren't decent ones, so I found one that I thought was very close enough to fit Yugi's personality and Akiiki was the winner. **


	31. The Two Great Dragons

**Now that I'm done with that duel, thank goodness, I can now focus on what's going on with Joey, Damon, and Kisara. I know you guys are curious about that one, since all you know for right now is that they're hiding. Review please!**

At Damon's home, Kisara looked out across the wheat field as the wind blew against her white hair. She worried continuously for Seth ever since Damon's dragon brought her here. Damon originally led his brother and Kisara to the cliffs of the Nile, then his dragon witnessed what happened when Seth confronted Aknadin:

Seth told Aknadin that Damon attacked him from behind and escaped along with Kisara and Joey. Aknadin could see there was more to the story and used his millennium eye to see behind Seth's lie. At first, the traitor played along with Seth's lie, then sought the chance and stole the millennium rod from Seth. That was when Seth was under Aknadin's mind control and Damon's dragon returned and took Joey and Kisara back to his and Joseph's home. Kisara and Joey knew something went terribly wrong when the black dragon arrived, took the two, and dropped them off at the place.

Damon wished continuously that he could know what his dragon saw. His communication with his dragon was nonexistent. He only knew that it existed inside him, just like Kisara only knew her dragon _existed_. Neither of the two could ever talk to their dragon counterparts and would question if their dragons could communicate with them or if it was even possible.

Joey sighed and walked to Kisara and Damon, saying, "I can't take standing here doing nothing while Prince Get-Himself-in-Trouble is getting killed or who knows what!"

"Joseph, what _can_ we do? We're not soldiers or priests and we don't know where they are. Besides that, our lord commanded us to stay hidden," Damon said.

"Before he got himself into whatever mess he got himself into! You're right, we're not soldiers_ under his command_, meaning we don't have to listen to a damn word he says," Joey pointed out, finding a loophole. "Listen, Seth's our friend and, if he's in a pickle, we can't just abandon him, at least I can't. He's done more for us than all of these assholes around here! I think that should mean something, even Kisara knows that!"

Kisara turned around as soon as Joey said her name. She looked out to where the palace was, her eyes wandering at that direction. Damon turned his head to Kisara, his eyes hardening, before looking at Joey's direction.

"If you do have a plan, please speak," Damon said.

"First, I think we should look for Seth and see what's going on with him," Joey planned.

"It's too risky. Searching would probably mean changing to our dragons. Our dragons could be easily seen, unless it's dark outside."

"I was actually thinking of just using Kisara's dragon. It's white, so it can camouflage in the daytime a little better. We'll just use it to see what's going on in the palace."

"This is _very_ risky, Joseph. Aknadin might see us."

"What if he doesn't! I'm telling you, Damon! A white dragon in the daytime is just as a good of camouflage as a black dragon during the nighttime."

"It could work," Kisara shrugged as Damon sighed.

"I hope you're right," Damon said as Joey gave a nod.

Kisara laid herself on the ground as the spirit of her dragon appeared from above her. Damon looked up, knowing what he must do. The white dragon knelt on the ground, so Damon and Joey could climb on its back. Damon sat on the front and Joey sat behind him, holding Kisara's body with care.

"Okay, fly to the palace, but stay in the sky," Damon commanded as the dragon took off to the palace.

The dragon eventually made it to the palace and Joey chanted a spell from the spell scroll to see what was going on in the palace through a portal, working like a magnifying glass. It showed Aknadin and Seth, under mind control, appear at one of the cliffs by the Nile. Joey glared furiously when he saw the millennium rod in Aknadin's hand, knowing that this was what Damon's dragon saw. Seth was under mind control.

"That son of a bitch!" Joey snapped. "He's using Seth as a puppet!"

"He must be looking for us, not knowing that my dragon moved us to a different location," Damon guessed.

"Is there any way to get that rod out of his hands?"

"Not that I know of, Joseph. We might have to fight him."

"A powerful priest against three commoners? Even with our dragon, I'm sure he's got more powerful monsters."

"There's not much we can do. It's as you said: we can't just abandon our lord."

"What if he tries to control us?"

_"There's that too,"_ Damon said, then thought of a plan. "Seth once said that the dragons are loyal to the one they're most bonded to. My dragon is loyal to you and Kisara is loyal to me and Seth. I'm going to have this dragon land us in the palace and release my dragon. It's a slim chance, but if both our dragons were against Aknadin, they could defeat him."

"Damon, if both your dragons were loose, they'll be out of control without a master!"

"Not _completely_. When Kisara's dragon destroyed our former master, there was some sort of _control_ through Kisara's mind. I've noticed that when either me or Kisara release our dragons: our minds would tell that dragon to do something and does it, like to follow someone's orders or attack something. When I release my dragon, I will command it in my mind to fight against Aknadin, then return to you to wait for farther orders."

"You seriously think that could work?" Joey asked with widened eyes.

"_I know_ it can. Just watch after Kisara's and I's bodies."

"I will."

"Take us to the palace and try not to be seen." Damon commanded as the white dragon flew behind the palace, where the gang could not be seen. The white dragon disappeared and Kisara began to wake up.

_"Did you find out what happened to lord Seth?"_ Kisara asked tiredly.

"Aknadin took lord Seth's millennium rod and is using it to control him. We'll have to change into our dragons and defeat him. I need you to think a command in your mind for your dragon to fight Aknadin and return here after he's defeated."

"You think we can think a command for our dragons to follow before we release it?" Kisara asked in surprise.

"Yes. I _know_ this will work. It's the only way to save our lord."

Kisara stared at the ground, then looked up with a nod. The two laid themselves on the ground before their dragons appeared and took off. Joey took the two bodies to the palace to be cared for. There was nothing much he could do at this point, besides take care of the bodies until the dragons returned.

* * *

The black dragon and white dragon flew on their way to Aknadin's location, where he was looking for Damon and Kisara. Aknadin knew Seth had to have hid the dragons here, after all this was practically the _only_ place he would think his son would hide the two dragons at. It was only during his search when he found both the Great Black Dragon and the Great White Dragon.

"Excellent, now to hit two birds with one stone," Aknadin smirked wickedly before the dragons began their attack on him. He shielded himself from the attack. "You fools think you can defeat the Lord of Darkness!?"

Aknadin cast a few attack spells on the dragons, who dodged the attacks and tried to attack back. Seth, who was possessed at this point, just stared blankly at the fight without emotion. The dragons attacked with fire blasts, tails, and jaws. They were very swift and difficult to hit, but Aknadin knew they were only novices compared to him. It was all about knowing how to control the animals. He chuckled darkly as he continually dodged their attacks.

"Very skillful, but not enough I'm afraid," Aknadin said as he took the millennium rod in his hands and pointed it at the white dragon, who tried fighting against it. The black dragon came up to attack, but Aknadin shot a dark blast at the dragon and sent it splashing in the Nile. "You're so _foolish_! Now, to send you to your new master!" Aknadin smirked as he pushed with all of his strength to move the Great White Dragon to the stone tablet.

Just then, the Great Black Dragon flew right at Aknadin, while he was distracted, and struck him with fire blast from its mouth. Aknadin tripped to the side and the Great White Dragon was sealed inside of Seth. At the same time, Yugi arrived on his chariot as he saw the Great White Dragon being transported to the inside of Seth by the millennium rod in Aknadin's hands. Aknadin glared directly at the black dragon.

"_You meddlesome dragon!_ I suppose this will have to do," Aknadin smirked.

"That's enough, Aknadin! You release my cousin before this gets out of hand!" Yugi shouted aloud.

"I have a better idea, dear nephew," Aknadin said, as he eyed at Seth. "Son, release the dragon from your soul to get rid of the Pharaoh once and for all!"

Yugi glared, preparing to summon out Mahad, as the Blue-Eyes White Dragon appeared from Seth's body with a ferocious roar. Aknadin smirked with confidence before the Blue-Eyes White Dragon conjured up a blast from its mouth, then blasted it right at Akndain, who screamed in agony and not expecting this. This took Yugi by surprise as well, then saw Seth's eyes were no longer hallow, but glaring and full of anger. That was when it dawned on Yugi what happened: when Kisara's dragon merged within Seth's body, it destroyed the mind control implanted in Seth's soul room.

Aknadin's body was found on the ground with third degree burns. Seth walked to it and snatched the millennium rod from Aknadin's hand before removing the cap from the bottom of the rod and stabbing his father right across the chest. Aknadin's body burst into flames before turning into nothing but ashes. Seth turned to the Blue-Eyes White Dragon, a smile shown across his face before it disappeared back into his soul.

"I'm sorry I couldn't be here on time," Yugi apologized.

"You came at the perfect time. We must return Kisara back to her body," Seth said as Yugi nodded.

The Great Black Dragon scooped up Seth and Yugi, delivering them on their way to the palace. They were delivered to the front of the palace where Damon's and Kisara's soulless body laid, being watched over by Joey. He ran to Yugi and Seth just as the black dragon disappeared into Damon's body and Damon began to wake up. The Blue-Eyes White Dragon's spirit was released from Seth before he used the millennium rod to insert it back into Kisara's body. Joey didn't know how that happened, but he decided not to ask.

Yugi remembered clearly how the _real_ battle between him and Aknadin went and knew for certain that it was because of Joey's and his own influence in the game that the battle was played differently. In the actual battle, Yugi had searched for Seth everywhere, but could not find him. He stayed in the palace, stressfully trying to battle against Zorc just when Seth arrived possessed and their battle began. It was due to Kisara's and Damon's bravery that they were able to save Seth, but only with Kisara's life. Though Kisara did not die at this particular battle, due to Yugi knowing and remembering _exactly_ where Aknadin was. If not now, she will be dead later on in this shadow game.

"Are you both okay?" Seth asked.

"We were going to ask you the same thing," Damon replied with a short smile.

"At least all of you are alright, but not for long. Zorc is on his way here and _will_ destroy everything unless we prepare," Yugi warned Seth.

"Then, we must prepare for battle. We're going to need all the help we can get," Seth said before turning and facing Damon and Kisara. "Are you two up for it?"

"Our dragons are yours, if it means saving Egypt," Damon said.

"And you ain't going without me!" Joey proclaimed.

"The other priests are on their way here with the millennium items stolen from us. I will let Ryou have the ring, since Mahad is no longer here," Yugi said.

"Are you _insane_!?" Seth glared.

"He's no longer being controlled anymore and we will make sure he'll _continue_ to be free from Zorc's control. He never intended on killing us and he holds a very powerful monster that could help us. You must show him mercy and give him a chance to redeem himself."

"I hope you know what you're doing."

"I do."


	32. Until Our Life is Gone

**Hey guys, here's the next chapter. I'm surprised how close to the ending I'm at. I'm actually at the battle with Zorc. I hope you guys enjoy it. Review please!**

Yugi stared in horror at the RPG game board where his tomb was located, which was crumbling. He knew his brother and company were inside and probably trapped inside from the collapsing rubble. So many memories and emotion entered Yugi and overwhelmed him throughout his whole body. He wished he could fly down there and hold Atem in his hands like _Monster World_. Though, Atem was inside the tomb and nothing in his power could save him.

Yami Ryou laughed with pure enjoyment at Yugi's misery. Gekko's body was unconscious, since Yami Ryou sealed his spirit inside Yugi's tomb. Yako was still holding Yugi down to the chair to play the game.

"_Isn't this entertaining?_ It seems that your friends are buried inside your tomb, along with your precious _brother_. It's too bad really. Now, you can never learn your mysterious lost name," Yami Ryou smirked evilly as Yugi never took his eyes off the collapsing tomb. "Let's continue, shall we? Zorc continues to destroy Egypt bit by bit."

Yugi held in every emotion he had for losing his brother to focus on the war at hand. He had to destroy Zorc or he would lose the game and the world will be doomed for destruction. Yugi looked through his cards, then out to the field where his characters were located.

* * *

Yugi and Seth stood side by side with the priests and armies behind them. Kisara, Damon, and Mana stayed behind in the camp to summon their Ka's and let them help fight. Seth controlled the Great White Dragon and Joey controlled the Great Black Dragon. Joey dressed in strong armor, holding a shield and bow and arrows. He stood next to Seth.

Ryou also wore armor, ready to summon Diabound when he needed to, and the spirits of Kul Elna were at his command. He wore the millennium ring and was ready to make Zorc pay for the misery and destruction he, with Aknadin's help, brought on Kul Elna. The ghosts shielded Ryou from Zorc possessing him again. Now that he was finally free, they weren't willing to let the only living survivor of Kul Elna be possessed again. The rest of the priests had their millennium items, Shimon having the millennium key, since he was the previous owner.

"Pharaoh, we still need a possessor for the millennium scale," Shimon reminded Yugi.

"I think I know a temporary possessor. Joseph may not seem much, but he's shows great bravery and loyalty. I've also trained him in some magic and is probably the only one alive, who could handle the scale's dark powers," Seth suggested.

"Prince, he has only trained for a month!" Shimon said.

"As I said, it's only temporarily and for us to fight the war. He knows how to summon a monster, so that's all he needs to use the scale for."

"Well, if an innocent teenage boy can use the ring, then who's to say a normal bystander can't use any other millennium item for a few things?" Yugi shrugged. It seemed moronic to him that _only_ a professional priest would be allowed to carry a millennium item when normal average people use the millennium puzzle and ring 24/7 outside of the game.

Zorc began walking his way to the city. Everyone stood in positions as Seth gave Joey the millennium scale. Joey held the scale in his hand and a smirk formed upon his lips as he climbed on the Great Black Dragon and it flew in the air. Seth also climbed on the Great White Dragon, then rose his millennium rod in the air. Seth summoned out Duos and Isis summoned out Spirta. Zorc chuckled darkly in response.

"You shall crumble like the land, Pharaoh!" Zorc shouted as he stomp his foot and the ground shook. More of the land before the army began to crack and the large gap in the land grew larger and larger, taking in some of the soldiers. "Your spirits and soldiers are nothing, but weaklings!"

"We'll see about that!" Mana glared, then turned to Mahad. "Let's do this!"

Mahad nodded, then crossed his wand with Mana's before a magic ball formed from their combined magic. The magic orb blasted right at Zorc with its powerful dark magic. The smoke of debris filled the air before it deceased and Zorc pushed it from his face. Yugi and his men glared in annoyance.

"You've gotta be kiddin' me! What is he, Godzilla?" Joey complained.

_"How annoying,"_ Zorc mumbled before sending a huge blast at the whole army and they all fell back on the ground. Seth and Joey used their dragons to fly out of the way.

"Son of a bitch. This guy must be Satan or something!" Joey glared.

_"What gave you that idea?"_ Seth asked sarcastically.

"Haven't you realized yet that fighting is useless, Seth?" Zorc asked demonically.

"I don't care how _useless_ this situation is! I will fight until the end!" Seth promised before turning to Joey. "How about we attack together?"

"You got it, Seth," Joey smirked.

Both the white and black dragon took a big gulp of breath and blew a mix of fire and lightning blast from their mouths against Zorc, who growled in pain. Mana and Mahad joined in with fighting against the demon. Zorc cringed in pure annoyance.

_"Annoying pests,"_ Zorc muttered.

"Our monsters alone can't stop Zorc. May I be of assistance?" Shimon requested as Yugi nodded.

"If there's any way you can stop Zorc, please do so," Yugi replied as Shimon glared, giving a nod.

Shimon took the millennium key in his hand and raised it up in the air. He chanted a spell he had not used in so many years, and then suddenly the millennium key glowed brightly and five beams shot from the ground all around him. Then, the beams together formed into a strong creature that looked like a body decoration found on an Ancient Egyptian coffin. Its arms and legs were strong in built, its ankles and wrists had cuffs, and a broken chain connected to each cuff. This monster was non other than Exodia.

"Hurray, the legendary Exodia that defeated 1,000 armies in a single night!" A random soldier cheered.

_"Thank you Captain Obvious!"_ Joey shouted to the random soldier sarcastically.

"You welcome!"

"Exodia, destroy your foes with burning rage!" Shimon commanded as Exodia made a loud roar and shot a huge blast at Zorc.

Zorc caught the attack and threw it into the sky before Exodia and him began fighting hand to hand. All the other Ka's began attacking Zorc as well. He was beginning to grow annoyed and decided to summon minions of his own from the ground below. Demon soldiers with mutated-like undead figures, only more monstrous and less corpse-like, began to attack the other Ka's and soldiers. Ryou used this chance to summon his Diabound to attack Zorc's minions, who were growing to be more difficult to fight than anyone thought.

Zorc and Exodia began attacking and punching each other, mostly Exodia taking the beatings. Shimon was feeling every pain from each attack and blood began coughing from his mouth. Yugi watched with anxiety in his eyes as he watched the poor old man getting beaten from what Exodia was taking from Zorc. Finally, Zorc made one final blast at Exodia and the forbidden one fell over, including Shimon, as Yugi ran over to his adviser and held the old man in his arms.

_"Shimon!"_ Yugi cried aloud with tears in his eyes.

_"Pharaoh..."_ Shimon croaked before coughing up more blood.

"You've lost, Pharaoh! Your armies can't defeat me! I shall destroy this place and leave it in dust!" Zorc shouted as Yugi glared deeply at Zorc.

"Then, I will keep fighting! You can't stop my spirit!"

"How pa-" Zorc asked before being blasted by the Great Black Dragon.

"You guys talk _way_ too much," Joey said before chanting a spell and his Ka emerged from his body. There, before him, was a powerful warrior with a blue outfit, a red man's skirt and helmet, and shoulder pads with pikes. It held a huge flaming sword. "_No way!_ Flame Swordsman is my _monster Ka_?" The Ka turned his head to reveal, what seemed to be, Joey's own face. "_Seriously!?_ I knew there was something handsome about him! I guess Joseph has been busy since Yugi sealed his soul in the puzzle. Do your stuff, man!"

Flame Swordsman nodded, then sat in front of Joey on the black dragon before they both descended down together. Joey hung onto his Ka, who took out its sword and shot a flaming blast at the same time the Great Black Dragon shot a fire blast from its mouth. Both blasts mixed together to create a powerful blast, which hit Zorc dead on. Ryou's eyes began darkening with unforgivable hate as the ghosts of his town gathered behind him.

_"Kill him,"_ Ryou commanded in a dark tone as the ghosts of Kul Elna began to attack alongside Diabound, who shot a huge blast from its snake tail at Zorc.

"The light in my soul is of hope and not even _you_ can blow it out, Zorc!" Yugi shouted at Zorc before the ghosts, Diabound, and Flame Swordsman on the Great Black Dragon began to attacked him.

Zorc shielded himself from the attack, though he was getting hurt. He growled, and then began to make another attack on Yugi and the others with the ground cracking and breaking apart.

Yugi felt himself almost losing his balance as the ground separated Hasan and him. Yugi was close to falling into the ground until Seth swooped down with the Great White Dragon and grabbed him with one hand. Yugi was placed behind Seth and the dragon flew back up to the sky. The Great White Dragon and Hasan shot a powerful blast at Zorc as the ground shook even harder and Ryou almost fell before being caught by the spirits of Kul Elna. That was when Zorc blasted Diabound and Ryou cried aloud, spitting blood out of his mouth.

"Is this all you've got?" Zorc asked rhetorically before releasing energy from his body and knocking off all of his attackers. Mahad disappeared as Yugi cried in horrible pain and more blood coughed from his mouth.

"Pharaoh!" Seth cried out with agony in his eyes. "Hold on!"

_"How cute!"_ Zorc mocked before shooting a blast at Seth and the white dragon.

The Great White Dragon cried in pain as it began landing hardly on the ground. The white dragon was wailing in pain. Seth looked at the dragon with worry saying, "hold on, Kisara. Everything's going to be okay."

Zorc then used the back of his hand to toss Mana aside, her landing on the ground hardly, before conjuring up a blast and aiming it at the Great Black Dragon. The white dragon's eyes lit up at the safety of the black dragon with red eyes before flying up, despite the wound.

"Kisara wait... DON'T!" Seth cried out as the white dragon bit Zorc's wrist.

Zorc growled in pain before taking the Great White Dragon by the neck, then sinking its claws into the chest of the dragon. Seth stared in shock as the white dragon coughed blood from its mouth before being smashed right onto the ground, then kicked afar.

"KISARA!" Seth cried out, using every ounce of strength to stay, so Yugi could be protected.

_"Stupid bitch,"_ Zorc muttered before the black dragon began to attack.

Flame Swordsman's eyes began flaming in rage at the same time the black dragon's eyes were also filled with rage. They both began charging for Zorc and shot him with tons of burning and painful fire. Zorc yelped in pain before smacking its hand against the dragon and two riders. The Great Black Dragon joined the white dragon in its crash-landing. Joey rolled off of the black dragon and checked its wound.

"Hang on Damon, we're right here," Joey said in a calm voice. He looked up at Flaming Swordsman. "Bring Kisara to safety."

Flaming Swordsman chanted a spell, which sent the Great White Dragon's spirit into Seth's body. Joey looked up and could see that if Kisara's dragon had stayed in the battlefield any longer, the woman would've died. The pain the dragon took was the same amount of pain Kisara's body would take, which was too far for the dragon spirit to return to it, and it was not made for war. Joey looked at his brother Damon, trying to stop the bleeding of the dragon's wound.

"I feel so _useless_!" Joey cried out, tears bursting from his eyes.

_"You're stronger than you think, Joseph,"_ Joey heard his soul monster Damon talking. _"Even the Pharaoh knows that."_

"But there's no way to beat this guy! How can-"

Suddenly, Joey looked far ahead. He rubbed his eyes to make sure they were adjusting right. There, on horsebacks, was Atem and the rest of the gang. After they escaped the tomb, they came across horses from several solders, who died from war. They realized that these horses were sent by Yugi to give them a faster ride. They were all covered in dirt, but with knowledge to who Yugi's real name was.

"HEY! GUYS!" Joey cried out as the gang began riding to their friend.

"We have Yugi's real name!" Atem cried before riding right passed Joey, who ran and followed his friends.


	33. He Who Inherits the Darkness

**We're finally at the final part. Now, it's time for the fun to begin. Yugi's finally going to get his real name. Review please!**

Atem and the others rode on horses on their way to Yugi, who was still struggling to fight against Zorc, along with several of his surviving priests. Joey pet the black dragon before running to Yugi's side, Atem and the gang following behind. Yugi looked out to the distance and saw his brother and his friends. _They were still alive!_ Yugi couldn't contain the joy he felt seeing Atem with his determined face again.

_"Brother,"_ Yugi whispered.

"Yugi?" Seth questioned, confused about whom Yugi was referring to, since he couldn't see Atem and company.

Everyone climbed off the horses and ran to Yugi's side. Tea gathered Yugi into her arms, tears of joy busting from her eyes. Seto looked at his look-alike in a weird fashion. He showed a very dumbfounded reaction to this surprise, to find the ancient version of himself. Joey stood in front of Yugi, along with the rest of the gang.

_"You came... for me,"_ Yugi whispered in Tea's ear, then burying his face in his girlfriend's shoulder. Tea could see that Zorc did a huge number on Yugi.

"So, the Pharaoh still has allies? No matter! I shall crush them like puny insects!" Zorc responded in a growling voice.

"Allies?" Seth questioned.

"There are spirits helping the Pharaoh that only he, Joseph, and I can see!" Ryou cried out. Ryan immediately turned his head toward the voice and saw Ryou from afar in Ancient Egyptian armor and a scar under his right eye.

"RYOU!" Ryan cried out, running to his brother and holding him tightly in his arms. "You little bitch. Don't you ever leave me like that again."

_"I'm glad to see you too,"_ Ryou whispered.

_"Aw, they're like identical twins!"_ a voice of a woman cooed as Ryan looked up and noticed a crowd of spirits surrounding Ryou. The woman that spoke held Ryou's eyes and smile.

_"Son of a bitch,"_ Ryan muttered with widened eyes.

"I think that will be enough harming innocents for one day!" Atem glared at Zorc.

"Summon your Ka's!" Joey cried out to his friends. "We all have one. Just say this spell..." Joey told his friends the spell to summon a Ka and they all chanted the exact spell.

From Tristan came Buster Blader, from Gekko came Angel 07, from Tea came Magician of Faith, from Hanaski came Marshmellon, and from Ryan came out Dark Necroshade. Ryan became slightly annoyed that his Ka was a girl, but at least she wasn't a weak girl or looked perky and girly. Seto's and Serenity's Ka's were emerged from them weirdly. Seth began gasping when he found his outfit began changing from his armor to, what looked like, the Battle City trench coat Seto wore with longer hair and a Blue-Eyes White Dragon helmet. He looked out and gasped at Seto, now having the ability to see him.

"Seth, what has _happened_ to you?" Isis asked in bewilderment.

_"I-I... I think..."_ Seth muttered, then a flood of memories came to him, realizing the answer to that question. He was inside a game world, fighting for his cousin's memories and this look-alike was his master. "I'm Kaibaman."

"Cool," Yugi responded with a smirk upon his lips.

Serenity began looking for her Ka, then saw something flying up in the sky with a blue and pink outfit and a wand. _It was Dark Magician Girl!_ She landed in front of Serenity saying, "hiya Master!"

_"No way!"_ Serenity responded cheerfully.

"Wait, my Ka isn't summoned!" Atem realized, his skin turning pale.

"Try this spell for size. After Kisara's death, I finally found a spell for even Ka's that are connected to the master's Ba's to be summoned with full control without having to pass out..." Kaibaman offered, telling Atem the spell. He chanted the spell and his body changed to full armor, the same as Black Luster Soldier. He also held the same exact sword in his hand.

"Oh HELL yeah!" Atem cried out in joy as the other priests gasped at his appearance.

_"Amazing!"_ The surviving soldiers gasped in amazement.

"No matter how many of you there are, you stand no chance against me!" Zorc shouted.

"I've got three words for you:_ suck my balls!_" Atem responded, counting the words with his fingers, as the Ancient Egyptian soldiers' and priests' eyes widened at the negative language.

"You dare define _me_!?"

"Kaibaman, summon the Blue-Eyes White Dragon!" Seto ordered his Ka, who smirked and from his body appeared non other than the Blue-Eyes White Dragon. Everybody awed in delight. The Blue-Eyes White Dragon then swooped down to Atem, who instantly climbed on the dragon as if he was _trained_ to do this, and a brilliant light appeared as the Blue-Eyes White Dragon came with two extra heads and both became Master Dragon Knight.

"Time to blow some shit up in this bitch!" Atem cried out excitedly as he signaled the Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon, he was riding on, to shoot blasts of brilliant light at Zorc, who wailed in pain. The other Ka monsters attacked as well before the smoke cleared and Zorc began making his attack.

The attack from Zorc was so powerful, it knocked Atem off Blue-Eyes Ultimate Dragon, who merged back to the Blue-Eyes White Dragon before Hasan appeared in front of the gang to block the attack. Yugi ran to his brother before witnessing Hasan's sacrifice.

"HASAN!" Yugi cried out.

_"Your mission was to find the Pharaoh's name,"_ Hasan told Yugi's friends.

"We found it!" Atem told Hasan, who turned his head to face the gang. His mask was now half broken, revealing half his face. _"Shadi?"_

_"I told you we would meet again,"_ Hasan smirked, winking. _"It was my mission to protect the Pharaoh. I apologize for trying to destroy your soul room. I was only keeping the former Pharaoh's promise. If I had known you were the chosen vessel, I would not have entered."_ With that, the blast from Zorc eliminated what was left of Hasan, who was Shadi, into nothing.

"Shadi..."

"I'm impressed that you survived that!" Zorc said as Atem glared angrily at him.

_"Son of a bitch,"_ Atem seethed through his teeth.

"I've got an idea!" Tristan shouted, then turned to his Ka. "Merge with Dark Magician Girl!"

Joey smirked, then held up the millennium scale and it glowed. Dark Magician Girl, or Mana, and Buster Blader glowed, then merged together as Dark Paladin Girl. Atem ran back up on Blue-Eyes White Dragon as they became Master Dragon Knight again. He gave Hanaski a signal as he gave a nod, then ran to Yugi's side, but not before giving Marshmellon a command to protect Yugi.

"I've had enough of you pests!" Zorc shouted right before Dark Paladin Girl twirled her wand, conjuring up her power, before the Blue-Eyes White Dragon began glowing to give Dark Paladin Girl more power and she shot a dark energy blast at the same time the three-headed white dragon shot a huge blast of light at Zorc.

Hanaski whispered something to Yugi as Zorc shot an enormous blast from his hands against the three-headed Blue-Eyes White Dragon and Dark Paladin Girl. Yugi got up and began shouting something from the top of his lungs, so loud, it was like a scream.

_"AKIIKI!"_ Yugi screamed before Zorc's blast disappeared, leaving the evil demon bewildered.

"Wha... WHAT'S THIS!?" Zorc shouted dumbfoundedly.

Yugi's body began showing a magnificent glow and all the millennium items began floating into the air and Yugi said in an echo, _"I win!"_ then a huge golden blast hit against Zorc as he screamed loudly in pain. At the same time, Dark Paladin Girl, Atem as Master Dragon Knight, Marshmellon, Kaibaman, Angel 07, Dark Necroshade, and even Flamed Swordman made their attack as well to end Zorc once and for all before he disappeared into dust.

Everyone cheered aloud in celebration, Joey shouting out, "WE DID IT!"

Suddenly, the ground began to shake and a huge hairy _boulder _of some sort, bigger than the Empire State Building, came crashing to the city out of nowhere. Everyone began running for their lives. Tea tried lifting her boyfriend up, but he pushed her off.

"Save yourself, I'm just a character of the game!" Yugi cried out before Atem grabbed Tea and flipped her over his shoulder and ran as fast as he could.

_"YUGI!"_ Tea screamed bloody murder.

The huge white hairy boulder was then lifted before gravity began changing to everyone's left side, falling to a never-ending fall. Everyone screamed before being caught on time by some sort of _soft brown cushion_. All the Ka's returned to their masters and Atem changed back to his normal outfit. Their world turned to blackness and Tea's scream was heard. There was a huge shake inside the containment everyone was trapped inside.

_"Yugi! Yugi!"_ Tea screamed, bawling her head off.

"It's okay, Tea. I'm right here," Yugi's voice was heard as if he was speaking through a microphone.

_"Yugi?"_ Atem muttered, feeling the cushion he was on. It felt slightly flaky. "_It is you!_ We're inside Yugi's hand!"

_"WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA AAAAAAT!?"_ Everyone cried out.

"Well... we were _inside the game_... I guess it was a game board. Something must've gone wrong after Yugi won," Atem thought. "The boulder we saw was a head of someone."

"Of _whom_?" Joey questioned.

"I'm going to send you guys back to your bodies okay!" Yugi promised, then chanted a spell.

Everyone else gasped, jerking their bodies upright. They all found themselves in coffins? Gekko found himself on the floor next to Yugi, then found his twin brother beating up, what looked to be like Ryan, like a rag doll, only it wasn't _Ryan_. Yami Ryou was on the floor, his mouth spitting out blood and his cheek bruised. Gekko ran to his twin brother's side as the rest of the gang came behind them.

"You get out of that boy right now!" Gekko shouted.

"Let me handle it!" Yugi told the twins, pushing them aside, as his millennium puzzle began to glow. Just then, all of the millennium items began to glow as well. Serenity gasped, noticing her necklace was back around her neck and glowing brightly. Seto got out the millennium rod, Joey got out the millennium scale, and Tea got out the millennium key.

"Where's the eye?" Tristan asked in a shouting voice.

"We have it!" Yako cried out, as he showed the millennium eye in his hand, which was covered by Gekko's hand, both holding and clasping the eye tightly, while their fingers entwined each other.

Yami Ryou screamed in horrible pain as the millennium ring around his neck began glowing a brilliant light until every inch of darkness left in him was gone. His head jerked back, then fell on the floor before being caught by the gang. They all knelt down, their eyes not leaving Ryan's body before his mouth and nose began to twitch. A slight moan was heard and he began opening his eyes.

_"Thanks for the save, but why do I feel like tons of cannonballs hit me?"_ Ryan asked hoarsely.

"My bad... sorry," Yako said plainly, then took the millennium eye, handing it to Yugi. "I believe _this_ belongs to you."

"Thanks," Yugi thanked, taking the millennium eye into his hands and putting it in his pocket.

"What the hell are _you guys_ doing here anyways?" Joey asked with glaring eyes.

"We were invited here by your demonic _friend_, who claimed to have murdered our father and gave us proof," Yako replied.

"Fair enough. I'm sorry for involving you into this," Yugi apologized.

"We kinda owe you anyways and I suppose bringing you the millennium eye was enough to pay up. Now, we're even and we're going home!" Yako snapped, storming out of the room.

"I think he's pissed about the fact he was being used as a puppet by that son of a bitch," Gekko explained, rubbing the back of his neck.

"I know that feeling," Joey said.

"So... what now?" Tea asked.

"Now that your little _fun_ is over, Yugi or_ Pharaoh Akiiki _must be returned to the Underworld where he belongs. The tomb is owned by the Ishtar family. You will have to gain their permission to go inside," Gekko explained.

"We know them! I'm sure they'd allow us to go!" Tea said.

"I'll get you all a private jet there and contact the Ishtar's," Seto said seriously.

"_Thank goodness!_ I think my brother and I need a vacation," Gekko said, then left the room, following his brother.

"I wonder what happened after you sealed your soul," Hanaski wondered.

"Well, my cousin took the throne and was married to Mana. They had five wonderful children. That's all I know," Yugi said.

"You remember _beyond_ sealing your soul?" Joey asked shocked and freaking out.

"_Huh?_ Oh no! I researched it, while my brother was sleeping during study hall," Yugi explained.

_"OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHH HHHHHHHHHH!"_ Everyone responded.

_"Yugi?"_ Atem said as Yugi turned and smiled. Just then, Atem ran up and embraced his brother tightly, refusing to let go, then kissing him on his neck and cheeks.

"I love you too," Yugi replied, embracing his brother. Just then, he was being tackled by his friends with a group hug. Everyone laughed together just before they heard someone open the door and march in.

"What's going on down here?" A man shouted as he rose two eyebrows. He had Ryan's white messy hair. "_Ryan?_ What the hell happened to you?"

"Hey Dad. We were playing a game, got a little rough, and the game board fell on my face. I'm okay," Ryan replied. His dad looked at his friends, who just shook their heads.

"I _see_... are you alright?" He asked, his eyes growing soft.

"I am. I'm sorry for the scare."

"As long as you're still _you_," Mr. Bakura said before walking back upstairs, then everyone sighed in relief.

"This whole day is going to require _years_ of therapy," Tristan commented.


	34. Going Over the Nile

**Looks like we're cutting close to the end and yes, we'll be having Marik's appearance. I loved his appearance at the end, it was super badass. Review please!**

Atem informed his mother and grandfather about what happened in the Domino History Museum, Yugi regaining back his memories, and returning to the Underworld. He also got in contact with Ishizu and she informed him to meet her and Marik at the Luxor International Airport. Seto signed up a private flight there with the amount of days Atem had off of work. He had a month to pack up and prepare for the flight.

Yugi used this time to spend with his friends for his last days of the month before he would return to the Underworld where he belonged. Nobody ever talked about it or mentioned it. Yugi even visited Tea's or Hanaski's house more often than usual. Atem also used the month to spend some time with Yugi. Time flew and the day finally came.

Atem waited at the airport for his private flight to Luxor to meet Ishizu and Marik. His mom decided to join along, with Duke watching over Solomon while she was gone. Atem's friends also came along: Tea, Joey, Tristan, Hanaski, Ryan, Serenity, and Seto. It was about an hour before their flight finally arrived and they all came aboard on their way to Luxor, Egypt. During most of the flight, Atem rested in his seat, looking out the window. Joey sat next to him.

"Hey Atem, you wanna play a round of Yahtzee?" Joey offered.

_"I'll pass,"_ Atem muttered, still looking out the window.

Joey narrowed both his eyebrows, wondering, "what's _his_ problem." Atem didn't feel like answering, which was a relief when Tea answered.

"Yugi... I mean _Akiiki,_ is going to return to the Underworld as soon as we get to Luxor. Him and Atem have been very close, so he's not _exactly_ taking this very well," Tea explained.

"Oh yeah... I almost forgot about that."

_"I just wanna get this thing over with,"_ Atem said in a very settle manner, placing his fingers on the window.

Joey let out a sigh as Yugi's spirit appeared, placing his chin on Atem's shoulder and asked, _"mind if I rest here?"_

_'Sure,'_ Atem replied in his mind as he sat normally against the seat and Yugi rested his head on his brother's shoulder, slowly closing his eyes. Atem decided to spoil Yugi for the entire ride until they all reached the tomb.

The gang finally reached the airport and exited the plane. The airport was large with the huge title "LUXOR" at the front and seemed to be at least one or two stories high. The inside of the airport was fancy with marble floors. There were different stores or restaurants around their Gate area and _everything_ was in Arabic, it was hard to read almost half of the signs. Atem didn't care, he just wanted to return Yugi back to _hea__ven_ or whatever and move on as quickly as possible; he already spent enough time with Yugi and the longer he stayed the harder it would be for Atem to move on.

Everyone finally reached outside of the airport by the roadway where everyone is usually dropped off. Uka pulled out a map of Luxor to find out where they were at.

_"Looks like they're late,"_ Ryan muttered in complaint.

"Are you sure we were supposed to meet them here?" Joey asked.

"That's what Ishizu said," Atem said, adjusting his sunglasses. Normally, he never put on sunglasses, but he was in a desert climate. He also wore a cap, his black tank top, a pair of jean shorts, and tennis shoes.

"Boy, it's hot out here!" Joey complained, taking an advertisement he found and fanning it on his face. He also wore sunglasses, but no cap, a pair of shorts, a white t-shirt, and flip-flops.

"What did you expect, this is _Egypt_, a desert climate," Seto replied grimly. This was the first time anyone had ever seen him in a white t-shirt and jeans.

"Anyone want sunblock?" Atem offered, getting out a small bottle of sunblock as everyone put out their hands, then he squirted it in their palms before everyone rubbed it on their arms and cheeks. Atem also got out some chap stick and put some on his lips before everyone gave him a look. "IT'S NOT _LIPBALM_ YOU DUMBASSES!" They all looked away after that. Atem sighed and got out the letter Ishizu sent him in the mail. He got out the photo inside, which showed some Ancient Egyptian characters and a huge eye at the top middle that looked like the same one on the millennium puzzle and items.

"Do you have the millennium items?" Tristan asked.

"They're in here," Atem replied, showing his duffel bag with the five millennium items inside.

"Just checking."

"Hey Atem, what's that?" Serenity asked, pointing to the photo in Atem's hand.

"I have no idea. Ishizu just sent me this, but I can't read any of this shit. Yugi said he'd explain when we get to the _boat_... whatever the hell that means. I mean I guess he means when we cross the Nile?" Atem guessed before letting out a sigh.

"Geez, what's taking them so long? I'm hot and bored here!" Joey complained.

"They'll get here when they get here," Atem said plainly.

_"I think I consumed too much water,"_ Tristan said hoarsely, resting on his back with his head against his duffel bag of stuff.

"I told ya you should've been careful about how much water you drink."

_"Gee, thanks for the support, Atem! You're a _really_ big help!"_

Finally, everyone noticed a motorcycle with a sidecar. Marik was driving the motorcycle and Odion was riding inside the sidecar, waving to the others, as they both arrived. Everyone walked to the duo, Atem with a plain grim on his face.

"You're late," Atem said.

"Sorry, we kinda ran into traffic," Marik explained.

"No, you wanted to buy a new leather vest at the last minute and said,_ 'don't worry Odion, we'll just buy this real quick and make it there no problem,'_ then we waited in line for ten minutes before buying the darn thing," Odion said as everyone rolled their eyes.

_"Of course,"_ Atem responded grimly.

"Oh co'mon Odion! I'm tired of wearing the same damn clothes I've worn since I was twelve! People are starting to call me gay, because it's going over my bellybutton! For crying out loud Odion, cut me some slack!" Marik complained as everyone laughed in response.

"Guess that explains the midriff," Seto smirked as Marik shot him a glare.

"I didn't have the money and shut up!" Marik snapped.

"By the way, how do you expect us to travel to Yugi's tomb with only room for two?" Uka asked, pointing to the motorcycle and sidecar.

"Since rich boy is here, along with Atem, I'm sure they have some money and I... kinda expected you guys to figure _that one_ out on your own," Marik confessed.

"I already rented a car before coming here. We'll take the bus and, after getting the car, we can follow Marik," Atem said.

"I also rented a car, we can split," Seto added.

"Sounds good to me," Joey replied.

Everyone got on a travel bus and got to the Rent-a-Car place to pickup the two cars rented for Seto and Atem. Everyone split on who would ride with whom. Riding with Atem was Uka at the front seat; Serenity, Ryan, and Hanaski in the back. Riding with Seto was Tristan in the front; Joey and Tea in the back.

"You CANNOT be serious! I'm sitting with _him_!?" Joey complained, pointing to Seto.

"Suck it up, Joey. We drew straws on it," Tea snapped as Joey folded his arms and pouted.

_"Me and my bad luck."_

"What kind of music does Wheeler hate the most?" Seto asked Atem with a sharp smirk.

"SCREW YOU, KAIBA!" Joey yelled, putting up his fist.

"Just get in the damn car already!" Atem snapped as Joey groaned and stepped inside the car Seto rented.

Seto and Atem began following Marik on their way to the ship, which was to lead everyone across the Nile. Seto's white car was in the front and Atem's black car was in the back. The vehicles drove along the long road to the docks, which seemed to almost take _forever_. Joey was especially getting bored and passed the time playing games on his phone. It was a matter of time before everyone made it to the ship.

The cars drove onto the ship where the other cars were parked. After that, everyone stepped out of the car and into the ship, after paying for their ride. The ship finally began to sail as the gang met Ishizu at the end of the ship. Marik ran to his sister and gave her a bear hug.

"I hope you weren't late to pick up the others. By the way, nice vest," Ishizu teased as Marik glared, rolling his eyes.

"As a matter of fact, he was," Atem smirked as Ishizu sighed.

_"Knew it,"_ Ishizu smirked, then turned to a serious expression. "Did you get the millennium items?"

"Yep, right in here," Atem said, showing his duffel bag with all of the seven millennium items.

"Good. I suppose it's time for me to explain how this is going to work. Pharaohs have always entered the Underworld from their tomb. Pharaoh Akiiki is no different, especially now that we know his name. You will find his sarcophagus inside. Marik and I will guide you there. You are to place the seven millennium items onto the coffin, which will have the slots where to put each millennium item. I would also not look inside, mostly Atem, since it looks... let's just say it doesn't look too _great_ and it won't be any help in _saying goodbye_."

"I understand," Atem said in a sorrowful voice.

"Will you hand me the photo, so I can explain more?"

"Sure," Atem replied, giving Ishizu the photo.

"This is a photo of the ancient doors to the Underworld. There is one in every tomb. The inscriptions read on how to send the Pharaoh to the Underworld."

"Yugi said he'd tell me what it said when _we got to the boat_."

Ishizu nodded, "I see."

Yugi's spirit appeared, then nodded saying, _"it says that you must place the seven millennium items on my coffin and say my name. Though... there must be a Ceremonial Battle."_

"Yugi says the millennium items must be placed on his coffin and his name must be stated, but there must also be a_ ceremonial battle_ of some sort," Atem explained as everyone's eyes widened.

"What kind of battle?" Hanaski asked in curiosity.

"A battle to prove himself as a king. It differs depending on the king's... weakness," Marik explained.

_"Weakness?"_ Atem questioned.

"Most kings had a weakness of pride, but Pharaoh Akiiki had a different weakness. You _know_ that weakness."

Atem glared at the ground and muttered, _"he can't let go."_

"Hm?" Uka questioned, two risen eyebrows.

"Once Yugi is close with somebody, it's hard for him to let go and move on."

"I see," Marik said. "In Ancient Egypt, a sword was used for battle, but we don't live in that day and age. What does Yugi use for fighting usually?"

"Party games. It depends on the criminal."

"Okay, first Yugi will have to find an opponent of his choosing and it will have to be someone he cares about the most."

"Well, from what I can see, it's Hanaski, Atem, and Tea... maybe Kaiba," Ryan said.

_"I honestly don't know which one I care about the most,"_ Yugi admitted, his head moping.

"Yugi says that he loves all three individually, but equally," Atem replied.

"How about which one is _harder_ for Yugi to let go?" Marik suggested as Atem turned to Yugi.

_"Can I take over?"_ Yugi asked as Atem nodded and let his brother take over. "I want my brother to be my opponent. I have lived inside him for so long, it's almost like we are halves of the same coin. I've found it harder to separate from him than anyone else, because they were at least separated from the start."

"Sounds good to me. What game do you think suits Atem?"

"There's alot of games he plays, but I'll choose his favorite game," Yugi said.

"I already know what _that_ _one_ is," Seto smirked.

"COOL! We'll be cheering for the both of ya all the way!" Joey said as Yugi smiled, then nodded.


	35. The Ceremonial Battle

**Hey guys. Here comes the next chapter. I want to spice things up in this part where Tea goes into the room to see Yami when it's Yugi... well the other way around, but you get the idea. This this is ending ****_At-Em-Oh Millennium World _****and I want to go back to the whole idea of writing ****_At-Em-Oh_**** in the first place (I guess I never really got into that one). The idea was creating a parallel universe where Yugi was the spirit of the puzzle and Atem was the puzzle solver, while also keeping their still general personality. Yes, there were alot of the times when Atem cussed, but his personality still matched his same persona from the original ****_Yu-Gi-Oh_**** manga. How would Atem react, if it was his ****_own_**** grandfather, whose soul was taken by Pegasus? How would he react to Seto Kaiba taking his grandfather's favorite card? How would he handle certain situations? The same could be said about Yugi. How would he respond to being ****_just a spirit_****? What would lead him to burning the criminal on death row alive? How would he handle a number of stressful situations? While some of the storylines were changed slightly, like Atem being the bully beaten up by Trudge instead of the victim, it still held true to the parallel dimensions. There were things I do think I should've changed in my ****_At-Em-Oh_**** saga, but they all had one thing in common: they all each told the audience how Yugi would've handled Yami's situations and how Yami would handle Yugi's situation. We all would've reacted differently in certain situations, but sometimes the effects remain the same. Sometimes in our situations, we might do things differently, but the outcome still remains the same. Even if Yugi and Yami were to be in each other's shoes, they'd react to certain situations differently, but the outcome still remains the same. Yugi might have a new girlfriend in this story, but he still must return to the Underworld and leave his modern friends behind. I guess my main goal in this story is not how differently the ending would be, but how differently each character would've reacted to the situations. Yes, the effects are still the same, Yugi still has to leave like Yami still had to leave, but the fact he rolled his dice in a different fashion makes this story all the more interesting. I want to thank you guys for reading this and yes, I'm still planning on doing a sequel after this one, though I'm going to end this one with a bang and I'm hoping you will enjoy it. Review please!**

Atem sat on a comfy chair in his personal room on the ship. He sighed before reaching out for his 22 pistol revolver on the table, which he brought with him from his car. He opened the barrel of the pistol, which showed all of the empty slots, biting his bottom lip. He sighed before hearing the door open to reveal Tea in plain sight. He looked up, placing his pistol down.

"Hey," Atem greeted.

"Why the hell do you have your arm here?" Tea asked.

"Didn't you know yet?"

_"Know?"_

"I'll take that as a _'no.'_ I thought Yugi mentioned to you guys that he was going to have us play my favorite game for the ceremonial duel."

"He did... wait, I thought your favorite game was Duel Monsters."

Atem laughed, then said, "you've known me for how many years and you _still_ don't know me that well? My favorite game isn't _Duel Monsters_, that's more of a social game we play in school. My favorite game is Russian Roulette."

Tea's eyes bulged wide open, responding, "_wha-wha-_WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT!?"

"You heard me. You just put one bullet inside the barrel, spin it, and shoot."

"I know how it goes, but you're just going to go _kill_ yourself!?"

Atem laughed, then responded, "_I love freaking you out._ Actually, we're not going to aim it at our heads like a couple of pot smokers. We're just going to aim it on the wall. Marik says it should be thick enough to catch a bullet of a 22 pistol revolver."

"You're full of shit, you know that?"

"And that's why everyone loves me."

_"I'm sure,"_ Tea replied grimly, then sighed, changing the subject. "Anyways, as you know, we'll be going to the other side of the Nile very soon and get to our hotel, so we can rest for tomorrow."

"Yeah," Atem replied in a sigh, staring at the wall in front of him.

"Are you thinking about the Ceremonial Battle... which I hope doesn't get anyone killed."

"Sorta," Atem snorted with a smirk upon his face before rolling his lips inside his mouth, then released them.

"Did Yugi... I mean _Akiiki_ say anything?"

Atem chuckled a little by the name, then replied, "he's kind of depressed about leaving to the Underworld."

"... I see."

"He's resting right now."

"Yeah... anyways, I have to get going. I think Tristan's getting sea sick."

"Gotcha," Atem winked before watching Tea leave, then sighed, staring at his gun.

It wasn't long before Atem exited from his private room and stood next to Joey at the front of the ship. Both boys were letting the breeze hit them as the ship continued to travel Northern to a dock on the other side. Joey noticed his best friend beside him and smiled lightheartedly.

"Seems like yesterday we were on a ship like this on our way to Duelist Kingdom," Joey said.

"You mean the Rape Ship," Atem joked as Joey snorted a laugh.

"That was hilarious. You were also hitting on Mai."

"She started it by checking out my abs."

Joey clasped his mouth shut with his hand, trying not to laugh at the memory of Mai's and Atem's lustful flirt with each other. The boys showed a pair of grins before letting out a sigh.

"Those were good times. I'm kinda glad I met Mai," Atem said.

"Same. If we hadn't met her, we wouldn't be a thing right now," Joey smirked.

"True. I'm glad something good came out of that, despite the fact Grandpa's soul was napped."

"Yeah. You nervous about tomorrow?"

"A little, but not because I'll win or lose."

_"I'm sorry."_

"I'm going to make this last day count for the both of us," Atem promised, clutching the chain holding his millennium puzzle around his neck.

"Hey bud," Joey said, then took Atem's hand and clasped it with a single bullet. "Make it count."

"I will. Thanks for being my friend," Atem said, then gave Joey a bear hug as he hugged his friend back. The wind still blew through their hair in a very gentle swift.

"Hey Atem!" Hanaski called out with a nervous look on his face. "Is Yugi in the mood?"

"Sure, he just woke up," Atem replied, changing to Yugi before Hanaski jumped and wrapped his arms around his friend's neck, crying on his shoulder.

_"Yugi!"_ Hanaski cried, weeping tears as Yugi hugged his friend back tightly.

"I'll miss you too, Hanaski!" Yugi replied, trying to stay strong for his friend, who was crying sorrowful tears.

"We're _all_ going to miss you, dude," Joey said, placing a hand on Yugi's shoulder.

"I guess you'll be gone after you win huh?" Hanaski asked, still crying.

_"The determination of the game isn't if I will win or lose... it's about if I'm willing to move on,"_ Yugi muttered as Hanaski wiped his tears and Yugi smiled, letting out a sigh. "You'll understand when the ceremony begins."

"I wish you all the luck in the world," Joey said with a smile as Yugi nodded, then stood at the front of the ship.

_"I wish you luck too, Yugi,"_ Atem said in spirit form as Yugi stared continually at the waves of the Nile.

Yugi did let Atem take over to drive over to the hotel as soon as the ship entered the dock. It was a small thick-walled hotel called_ Nour El Gourna Hotel_. There were palms surrounding the place, a few painting decorations on certain parts of the walls, a balcony for each room on the second floor with the fence being painted a brownish-red (each door was also painted the same color), and a small river with a few small bridges was in the middle of the different building rooms of the hotel. It wasn't a 5 star, but was the only one closer to the Valley of the Kings. Atem and Seto were able to each pay for several rooms, two people per room: Tea with Serenity, Joey with Tristan, Marik with Odion, Uka with Ishizu, Hanaski with Seto, and Ryan with Atem.

Atem was more comfortable with rooming with Ryan, because it wasn't just Yugi that would part from Atem. Ryan and Ryou also had to part as well. Ryan borrowed the millennium ring for the time being and did use it to let Ryou spend some time with his friends. This would also be Ryan's and Ryou's last day together. Ryou also had to return to the land of the dead, since he did not belong in this world just like Yugi.

Atem took off his regular clothes, replaced them with PJ's, and laid on the bed with the bed curtain surrounding the bed. Yugi laid his head on Atem's shoulder, wrapping his arms around his brother in his spirited form. Yugi buried his face as Atem held onto his brother loosely, staring at the ceiling. It only seemed like yesterday, Yugi did this kind of thing almost all the time and tried to snuggle Atem like a teddy bear. He just stared and waited for time to pass before hearing the door open.

Ryan came, taking off his clothes, replacing them with PJ's, and laid on the bed beside Atem saying, "I _hate_ one room hotels!"

"You can lay on the floor, if you want," Atem said plainly.

"And give Ryou a backache till the next day? Forget it!" Ryan snapped, having his back face Atem. "I should've brought my sleeping bag."

"They did give us different sheets and blankets."

"I _don't_ care!"

Atem continued to stare at the ceiling, not finding the will to sleep, even though he wanted to. It wasn't the fact that he was sleeping in the same bed as another guy as much as it was him battling Yugi. Atem didn't want to battle Yugi, but knew he had to in order for his brother to return to the afterlife. This was the only way to free his dear friend and brother. Yugi's humming noise was heard once more. This would be the last time Atem could ever hear that beautiful white noise.

Atem's eyes became heavy and closed his eyelids to a deep sleep. The only thing left to Atem was silence. The Ceremonial Battle would prove to be Yugi's most server battle; though the fact it was Russian Roulette made that fact clear. The game was based on luck and Yugi knew that it wasn't about skill or winning. It was a test for himself, a test to prove if he was ready or not to move on. 3,000 years have passed since the battle against Zorc and now was Yugi's ultimate decision whether to stay or move on to the future for himself and for Atem.

Yugi's decision would be decided in this battle. _Will he move into the Underworld or stay?_


	36. To the Ceremony

**I made the travel a little more realistic, because if you look at both the manga and the anime, the travel to the Valley of the Kings doesn't even get into detail about the travel, because it's like BOOM we're there. I'm dead serious about that. Now, I was impressed about how they explain the boat trip from Cario to Egypt, because that's a freakin' long time on boat and the explanation on ****_why_**** they couldn't go to the Luxor Airport and the symbolism was very believable and clever. What I didn't get is why we never get to see the travel from the boat to the Valley of the Kings, because that place is in desert area while the rest is like forest green and would take hours to get there. Now granted, the gang is dragging in this story, but it's obvious why. I just never got why the manga just went from the airport right to the boat, I mean how did they get there? I doubt if Marik is able to fit everyone in his motorcycle. At least the anime did give us ****_some_**** explanation, but the travel was still too bit of a boom, because it is a long ways, especially by foot. I would estimate it would be like traveling on the Lake Pontchartrain Causeway. If you don't know what that is, google it and find out how many miles it is. I still remember my mom driving on that bridge and I was like one of those little annoying brats that keep asking "are we there yet?" because it actually makes you feel like saying that; and don't think there's a gas station on the way for a bathroom break, because there isn't. I just think that there should've been some panels about everyone traveling to the ship and to the Valley of the Kings. I mean why didn't they use the camel joke when they're traveling to the Valley of the Kings and not when they make it to Egypt? I don't know. I'm getting off track. Review please!**

Atem woke up, the sun hitting his eyes, before letting out a tiresome yawn and stretching out his arms. He looked to his right and noticed Ryan was still asleep. Atem sighed and decided to get some breakfast for the morning. The breakfast in Egypt was different, since it consisted of some sort of soup and boiled eggs. Atem had some sort of open mind when it came to different foods as long as they weren't bugs or escargot... he still hadn't forgiven Seto for making him eat that. The food was good and Atem enjoyed it, but the Ceremonial Battle was still on his mind.

Yugi's spirit appeared and stared at the breakfast food with curiosity and interest.

_"It's amazing how much Egypt has changed,"_ Yugi said.

_'You mean besides the _no Pharaoh_ policy?'_ Atem joked as Yugi chuckled.

_"I was talking about the places and food. We never had eggs or soup for breakfast 3000 years ago. Then again, it did take longer to cook a meal. Not to mention everything's advanced now."_

_'Yep. Things ain't like they used to be, 'ay old timer?'_

_"Very funny, brother,"_ Yugi said, rolling his eyes as Atem chuckled and ate his soup.

_'So, what do you think it's going to be like in the Underworld?'_

_"I don't know, but I'm hoping it'll be fantastic."_

Yugi sighed, then stared out at the palm trees, wishing he could stay with Atem and his friends and not have to leave. He knew it was time to let go, but it was so hard to do and there were so many people he grew to love. Yugi knew, if he wished to stay, Atem would grant that wish, but then neither of them would _have_ a future. Atem and Yugi couldn't have a wife and kids, if they both were living in the same body. Yugi wondered if dating Tea was a mistake on his part or not, seeing that them being together turned into a huge fall.

The whole day became longer as everyone prepared for their leave in the two rented cars and traveled on their way to the Valley of the Kings. Yugi looked out the window and began seeing images of what was once his kingdom and now has changed since 3000 years ago. When they reached the dead end of the road, they rode on camels across the desert land. Yugi still felt depressed about what was about to happen. Suddenly...

_"PPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPP PPPP!"_ A sound caught Yugi's attention.

"OH F***ING GOD!" Tristan complained.

_"Camels have huge gas,"_ an Egyptian guide told everyone, who was at the very front with a white turban and robe.

"You have _got_ to be kidding me!" Tea complained.

"You mean we spent our money just to be fart on!?" Joey raged before...

_"PPPPPPPPPPPPPPffffffffffffff fffffffffff!"_

"GOD DAMNIT!" Ryan cursed.

_"Actually... that be me,"_ the Egyptian Guide admitted as Yugi couldn't help, but make a chuckling reaction.

_"PPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPP PPPP!"_

_"And that be camel."_

"Oh shit!" Joey complained.

_"This has got to be a joke,"_ Seto seethed through his teeth in annoyance.

"It is," Atem smirked in reply before everyone heard something crumbling and saw a sanded house, one of its walls tumbling.

_"That is very strange,"_ the Egyptian Guide responded before everyone continued.

Everyone continued on their journey until they reached the tomb of Akiiki, or _the tomb of the Nameless Pharaoh_. Everyone got off their camels and paid for their ride just before one of the camels farted right on Joey from behind. Joey's eyes widened as everyone turned and burst into laughter.

"Oh yeah, _very_ funny!" Joey shouted in annoyance.

"Okay everyone, let's go inside," Uka told everyone, trying hard not to laugh.

Everyone entered Yugi's tomb, which was huge and dark. Marik turned on his flashlight and led everyone inside of the tomb. It was dark and there were dead skeletons at the floor bottom of the maze, which Serenity almost screamed at in response. It was a matter of time before everyone entered the room where Yugi's sarcophagus laid there in the middle, where his real name stood up on the wall. The lid of the sarcophagus showed holes of where to put each millennium item.

Ryan was the first to place the millennium ring on the lid. Then, Atem unzipped the duffel bag and placed the other items on the lid: eye, scale, rod, necklace and key. Atem took off his millennium puzzle and sighed as he looked at Yugi, who gave a nod in response. He placed the puzzle in the middle of the lid with the hole-shape of the upside down pyramid. Suddenly, the sarcophagus glowed with pure light as everyone gasped and backed away.

Everyone stood frozen still when they saw a figure appear from the ground in a laying position. Joey's blood left his face as the sand began pouring from the body in the shape of a person, who began sitting up while the sand left his face. It showed the hair color and face of non other than Ryou, scar included. Ryan immediately ran to Ryou's side and got out a towel from his bag to wrap around Ryou's waist. Marik warned Atem and Ryan that something like this would happen and their partners would appear _naked_.

The glow fainted as the lid to the sarcophagus slid open and a figure appeared in white linen wrappings sitting up, which lost the rest of Joey's dignity as he screamed bloody murder.

"Joey, it's me!" Yugi assured, unwrapping the linen wrappings on his head and face off. "Good thing when Seth wrapped me, he didn't use oil on my body."

_"Well, aren't _you _lucky?"_ Ryan responded sarcastically.

"This magic will only last for a whole day, so you two have until then to complete the Ceremonial Battle. If not, then Pharaoh Akiiki's soul will return to the millennium puzzle, Ryou's soul to the ring, and they will be trapped in the puzzle for all eternaty," Ishizu explained.

"It's now or never, I guess. Let's get this over with. Besides, I doubt if anyone will want to see you running around in _that_ anyways," Atem slightly teased, getting out his gun and loading it with one bullet.

"Wait, what _battle_ are you going to do exactly?" Uka asked with widened eyes.

"Yugi decided for their Ceremonial Battle to be a Shadow Game of Atem's favorite game, Russian Roulette," Seto replied plainly.

"ATEM MOTO!" Uka rebuked with folded arms.

"Mom, I'm not going to point the gun to my head. You know when Joey and I play it, we always shoot at the sky or something," Atem replied, rolling his eyes.

"This actually is a fitting battle for them to play," Marik responded as Uka looked at him as if he was insane. "Think about it. For the Pharaoh to return to the Underworld, he must pass the ultimate test of learning to move on. To do that, he must find the will to leave his old body he's in right now."

"You mean like..." Tea asked, hoping that what Marik said wasn't true.

_"Yep."_

"How this will work is that there are 10 rounds to the game for each time brother and I take our turn. The one with more successful shots in ten rounds loses the game," Yugi explained, then darkness engulfed the field. "If the player wants to, he can aim it to his head or have a volunteer to aim it at, but if the trigger shoots himself or someone else, their body will turn to dust."

_"WHAT!?"_ Uka almost screamed, freaking out.

"Sounds fine to me. We'll take turns using my gun. You want to go first?" Atem offered.

"N-No, you go," Yugi said, then Atem nodded, and turned the safety off.

Atem backed off a far distance at the same time everyone else did. He spun the barrel, then waited until it stopped before shooting it at the wall ahead. Everyone covered their ears, but no sound was heard. Atem smirked, then let a chuckle exit his nose before passing it off to Yugi. He spun the barrel, then waited until it stopped before pulling the trigger. No sound was heard.

"That was round one," Atem said as Marik drew a chart to keep Atem's and Yugi's scores. He placed an X in the boxes for Atem and Yugi of round one.

"Wait, so you're allowed to ask a volunteer or point it to-" Uka asked.

"I think there's a deeper meaning to this. We have two people that need to crossover to the Underworld. To do that, that person must be willing to give up their old bodies," Marik explained as Uka, then realized the _meaning _behind the rules. This Shadow Game was to test Yugi and Ryou, if they decided to move onto the afterlife or not... if they were willing to give up their lives.

Atem took the gun back and spun the barrel once more. He pointed the gun ahead and pulled the trigger. Nothing came out. He passed it onto Yugi, who spun the barrel and pointed it ahead. A loud bang was heard, the kickback made Yugi step back with a shocking expression. Everyone else flinched from the loud bang.

"That was _loud_!" Yugi responded.

"That's a mark for Yugi," Marik said, placing a check in Yugi's box for round 2.

"Okay, my turn," Atem said, getting his gun and replacing the bullet with a new one. "Ryou, will you volunteer?"

Ryan bit his tongue from the inside of his mouth as Ryou nodded his head, feeling his eyes turn teary. He held Ryan tightly before running right in front of Atem. He knew, in this Shadow Game, once the bullet hits Ryou there's no going back and his body would turn to dust. Atem couldn't decide if this would technically be considered _murder_, since he was shooting someone who was already _dead_ and would be in 24 hours anyways, or not. The barrel was spun and the nozzle was pointed to Ryou's head.

Atem shut his eyes tightly and pulled the trigger. Nothing came out. A sigh left him and Ryou walked back to Ryan's side. Ryou then, clasped his arms around Ryan and letting the tears hit his shirt. They knew their moment together would only be temporarily and it was time for right now to say goodbye.

Yugi spun the barrel, then pulled the trigger. Nothing came out. There was no bang in round 3. Joey slightly found this very weird. Usually, the chances of hitting the bullet was huge, because the gravity pull would bring the bullet down to the hole. It dawned on Joey that this _Shadow Game_ was making the chances of the bullet being shot even. Atem and Yugi had a 1/6th percent chance of hitting the bullet.

Atem spun the barrel and made his shot. Nothing was heard. He handed his gun to Yugi, who pointed it straight ahead, spinning the barrel. It kept spinning and spinning until it stopped and Yugi pulled the trigger. Nothing came out. Marik put X's on Yugi's and Atem's boxes for round 4. Atem volunteered Ryou once more and he stood in front. The nozzle was pointed to Ryou's head.

Ryou took a deep breath as he heard the barrel spinning and spinning. He knew it was time for him to leave. He looked at Ryan, who gave a smile as Ryou gave one back. He knew at this point, he was ready. The shot was heard and Ryou turned to dust. Everyone gasped as the room turned cold and everything stood still. No sound was made.

The millennium ring on the sarcophagus lid began to glow as Ryou appeared as a transcended spirit. He smiled, looking right at Yugi, who became hesitated. He stared at the ground with a slightly gaped mouth. He spun the barrel and his arm trembled as he slowly pointed the gun nozzle to his head. There was no going back now.


	37. The Ties that Bind

**Here's the next chapter. I loved that people found the Kangaroo Jack reference hilarious as much as I did rofl. Anyways, this should be the last of the ceremonial battle, but not the last chapter. I was also surprised that the last chapter also made at least two people cry. I haven't even gotten to the teary part yet! Anyways, review please!**

Yugi spun the barrel, after Atem placed a bullet inside the slot, and heard it spin around and around, the nozzle of the gun pointed to his head directly. His hand was shaking and was almost into tears as the barrel stopped and Yugi pulled the trigger. Nothing happened. That was a mark for Atem and non for Yugi for round 5. Yugi felt fearful, then looked at his brother with saddened eyes.

_"Y-You can volunteer me, if you want to,"_ Yugi said hoarsely.

Atem shook his head and replied, "that is your call Yugi, not mine." He spun the barrel, pointed the gun at the wall, and pulled the trigger. Nothing came out. He handed it to Yugi, who put the nozzle to his head and spun the barrel. There was no bang, yet again. Neither of the boys had marks for round 6. "I'm sorry this is hard for you."

_"I don't wanna leave, brother! I know Ryou is willing to leave, but I can't! We've been through too much together and you've inspired me! I know I'm supposed to be the strong and brave Pharaoh, but I'm only human! I'm not a god and I'm not even Pharaoh anymore! I'm just HUMAN with thoughts, emotions, and friends I've grown so close to! I don't want to leave my happy world!"_ Yugi cried out, bursting into tears and falling on his knees, his hands covering his face.

Atem walked to Yugi and held him with gentle arms. Yugi didn't want to let go of this embrace, burying his face in his brother's shoulder, tears falling onto his tank top. Atem didn't want Yugi to go either, but had to stay strong. Yugi was right, he was only human and a fragile one at that. Yugi grew close to Atem before he even realized it.

_"Why did you choose me?"_ Atem asked quietly as Yugi peeked his face, wiping his tears._ "Why, among every person you could've chosen of this time period to carry your soul, did you choose _me_ as your vessel?"_

_"B-Because... you were everything _I_ wanted to be,"_ Yugi admitted, still in tears, as Atem rose two eyebrows in surprise. "You had been through tough hardships and trails, people have tortured and beaten you, but... but you fought back. You looked at them in the eye and fought back. You made friends with those, who didn't deserve it, and pitied them."

"I could because YOU inspired me to! You gave me the ability to change, to pity those I could not, to become a better friend to those I could never understand before! That was _you_, Yugi!" Atem said, remembering his wish on the puzzle, his fingers tightening his grip. "I never pitied anyone before I met you, Yugi. All I cared about was what _I_ wanted and _my own_ problems. I wanted to understand others, but didn't know I could... that I could use my own problems to understand others, to know that I've been through worst or the same shit they're going through. I may not be able to have it worse than some_ or most_, but I can use my shit to try."

_"B-Brother."_

"I shut people out of my life before I met you. I didn't think anyone could relate to me, except maybe Joey. I never opened up to my own mother until I met you. Thinking back, it was _me_ that didn't understand her and I should've known better than to think I could ever have a worse life than her, when she's been in this world longer than me and has faced shit herself. I know now that I _can_ understand people and there are those that have _always_ understood me. We're human Yugi and we're not perfect, but we're also human to where we have the ability to show kindness and love. I never knew I could do that until I met you."

Yugi looked into Atem's eyes, which seemed to almost water, but trying to prevent themselves. Yugi placed his hand on Atem's face and whispered, _"you've always had that before you knew me."_ Atem stared at Yugi dumbfoundedly. "As a boy you had that ability. I watched you show kindness and love to Joey and Serenity, who were both from a broken home and let them into your life. When Joey was living with his father, you were willing to suffer with him just to be with him. You may not realize it, but your suffering was also a sacrifice. The scars you hold were the scars you carry from protecting your friend."

Uka heard everything Yugi had stated to Atem. She knew in her heart this was true. She still remembered when her son called her while she was at the hospital with her father-in-law. Atem was participating in the Death T tournament during the time. He had admitted to her that his virginity was taken from him at ten years old. She still remembered when Atem came home from his sleepover with Joey, the little innocent boy left Atem and left a scar behind that could never be healed. Joey was able to fill in the gaps of what happened that day.

Joey's father came home drunk during Atem's sleepover. Joey and Atem threw all the beer cans and bottles, even ones that were hidden, away into the dump. When Joey's father arrived drunk from the bar and discovered this, he yelled and screamed Joey's name and went after him, about to pound the poor boy. Then, Atem stood out and lied that _he_ poured out the beer cans and bottles and not Joey. His father then picked Atem up by his neck, choked him, then dragged him into the bedroom with the door locked and Joey heard Atem screaming, crying, along with alot of banging and glass breaking. Atem finally came out and ran to Joey's room with the door locked, but the sight was dreadful. Atem was naked and blood covered half of his body and his butt was ripped open. Joey had to cover it with his shirt and Atem took a shower the next day to clean the blood off.

Uka finally understood why the boys never told her what happened during that sleepover. They knew if she ever knew, at that particular day, what happened, she would've tortured and killed Joey's father and would've got herself arrested. Uka wished she could've prevented that day from happening, tell Atem he was not allowed to have a sleepover with Joey. Though, it was as Yugi said, that _suffering_ was a sacrifice. If not Atem, it would've been Joey. Because of Atem, Joey had someone to cry over, to share his pain with, to feel what _he_ felt. Sometimes love means willing to take the hit before the other person does. This was what Yugi saw in Atem, a coal black heart created from the kindness and love he bestowed on others.

Atem smiled, and then held Yugi tightly in his arms before saying, "then you have the ability to leave your old family and move on to create a new one." Yugi sniffed, from all the crying, and widened his eyes. "You _had_ a family before you met me." Yugi remembered his ancient family: Mana, Mahad, his father, Seth, Shimon, Shada, Isis, Joseph, Damon, Karim, and Kisara. It was hard to let go of them as well. "What made you decide to move on?"

"I-I don't know. I guess it was the hope of seeing them again after defeating Zorc," Yugi said, as Atem took him by the shoulders and looked at him directly in the eye.

"Then, don't you think you'll see me again as well? I won't be gone for 3000 years. I will grow up, raise a family, get a job, have a life, retire, then die from old age, cancer, murder, or whatever. Then, we can reunite and I know when I'm on my death bed, you will be the first thing I will look forward to. Even those that separate will eventually meet again in the distant future somewhere. If you hold onto that hope, I _know_ we will be together again and spend as much time together as we want, this time in separate bodies."

Yugi knew Atem was right. They would meet again when Atem's time in this world was up and it was time for him to crossover as well. He might be cremated, but his soul will rest in the Underworld and that is where they would meet. Yugi wrapped his arms around Atem and kissed both his cheeks before hugging him tightly.

"You'll always have a place in my heart," Atem promised, then kissed Yugi on his head.

"So will you!" Yugi said, holding a confident smile. He stood up and spun the barrel as hard as he could. The barrel kept spinning and spinning until it came to a stop. The trigger was pulled and a loud bang was heard, making everyone jump and gasp. Yugi turned to dust in an instant, leaving only his spiritual soul behind. The Eye of Horus from the door to the Underworld glowed with bright brilliance as it slowly made a huge round portal that shined a brilliant white and yellow light.

_"Whoa!"_ Everyone responded as they saw a spirited figure arrive from that world. They all gasped together, seeing Yugi's father Pharaoh Aknamkanon in the flesh.

"You have done well, son," Aknamkanon said as Yugi ran to his father and gave him a big hug.

"I missed you so much!" Yugi cried.

"Thank you for everything. I wish there was something I can do to repay all of you," Aknamkanon thanked everyone.

"I-It's fine... um... _Pharaoh_ sir. I just want Yugi to have a life and a future," Atem said.

"I know and I'm sure there were _other reasons_ you led Yugi here, but I still owe you my gratitude. I never thought I'd see my flesh and blood again. I never meant for him to go through all of this pain and suffering. I feel it is fair to offer at least _one_ thing in return, so I decided to give you this..." Aknamkanon replied, stepping aside for several spirits to arrive, making everyone gasp in pure horror.

The first to arrive was Damon, which made Joey smile and run up to him, giving him a bear hug. Damon laughed, hugging Joey back and saying, "this is the first time we've met face to face. You have done good Joseph and I'm proud of you. You even are an older sibling yourself." Joey looked at Serenity, who just smiled and waved, greeting Damon for the first time.

Two other spirits arrived, which made Ryan pale and frozen. One was an older woman with straight and elegant white hair, a fair face, and a simple blouse and pants. Beside her was a small young five-year-old girl with white hair and beautiful baby blue eyes. Ryan almost couldn't catch his breath, that was his mother and little sister, who passed away long ago from a car accident. It was questioned why his little sister was the same age as she originally was when she died those years ago, then guessed that spirits appear at the age and maturity that they died.

_"Ry-Ry, is that you?"_ the little girl asked in a British accent as she ran from her mother and hugged Ryan from the waist. He knelt down and held his little sister in his arms.

"It's okay Amane, I'm right here," Ryan said in English.

_"What kind of accent is that?"_ Ryan's mother teased before hugging her son.

"Mother."

"Tristan sweety pie!" A voice from a brown-haired woman cried out with an older woman with short black hair and hazel eyes beside her. Tristan burst into tears before hugging both women.

"Mom, I'm so sorry for everything I ever said to you! I love you so much!" Tristan cried.

"I know, sweety. I'm sorry for hurting you the way I did. Your father was no good, but that was no reason for me to waste my life in drugs and leave you and your sister to fend for yourselves. I'm proud of you for taking care of your sister and my grandson," Tristan's Mom replied.

_"And... I hope you forgive me for committing suicide. I was a selfish coward and now I'm having to pay for everything!"_ Tristan's Aunt said with tears in her eyes.

"Oh, Aunt Grace!" Tristan cried, hugging his aunt tightly.

Tea saw her mother stepping from the portal and she immediately ran to her and embraced her, shedding tears. Seto's stoic expression began changing when he noticed two other people appearing from the portal. _It couldn't be! No, it just _couldn't_!_ That beautiful blond hair and calm blue eyes, that smile Seto only saw in Mokuba. The other had brown hair that matched his own, those bright blue eyes that seemed cold at times, the stoic expression Seto found on his own. They were his _real_ parents. The two spirits walked to Seto, whose mouth gaped slightly as he looked ahead to see his father was his own size in stature.

"Seto, son, how is Mokuba doing?" Seto's father asked.

Seto cleared his throat, holding in his emotions, before replying, "he's positively well and fed. I'm sorry he can't be here. Someone has to run Kaiba Corporation."

"That is good. You're a true man, Seto. I know I can't be there for you and Mokuba like a good father should, but I am glad you could rise from the ashes without your mother and I's guidance. You prove more of yourself than I could ever hope for. Do me a favor and don't change that," Seto's Dad advised as Seto nodded, then his mother embraced him joyfully as he hugged his mother back. His father, then looked to Atem's direction. "I also heard you took care of my son Mokuba, while Seto was in the hospital."

"Uh... yeah. Seto being in the hospital was also my fault and I couldn't protect Mokuba forever-" Atem said, feeling awkward about the situation during the time.

"Which is more than Destiny and I could do on our own, especially our _relatives_. As for how Seto got into the hospital, let us _not speak of it_. I don't need to know the details."

"_Sure._ Your welcome," Atem replied as Seto's father smiled and gave a nod. He was indeed_ Seto's real father_, though more stern than Seto was.

_"KO!"_ Uka squealed, almost frozen in fear, as Atem looked and saw a tall man with slightly spiked black hair and hint of gold in his bangs, violet eyes, but a very calm expression.

_"D-D-D-D..."_ Atem stuttered before gently being embraced by this man, his eyes watering.

"Shhhhh, there there. Dry up those tears," Ko said in a gentle voice as Atem wiped his tears.

_"It's just been s-s-so long. I-I don't even remember your face... or at least I _didn't_... I-I-I completely forgot your voice, face, everything."_

"But you knew it was me. Have you been doing what your mother says?"

"I am trying, but... I hadn't been for so many years... I did things I always knew you'd kill me for."

"Let me give you a hint. There isn't one thing you've done that your mother and I haven't done worse. You can ask her, it's true." Ko winked and Uka couldn't help, but chuckle as Atem looked at his father in surprise. "And yes, I probably would've sent you straight to hell and back first thing when you pulled the kind of shit on your mother and grandfather, but... I digress. You did good and... ten times better than I did at your age."

"I suppose."

"I never managed a company in my life and never could, I have too many police records for that. Don't kick yourself in the ass too hard, _just_ enough to get your act together. Think you can do that, Atem?"

"I will. I didn't know you cussed, let alone was arrested."

"That's because you only knew me at toddler age. I promise you, if not for that accident, you would've seen a very _interesting_ side to me."

_"Cool."_

"ATEM MOTO!" Uka rebuked, then shook her head with a sigh.

"I love you, son. You take good care of your mother and my future daughter-in-law. She's a beauty, by the way," Ko said, patting Atem on the shoulder.

"Hell yeah she is!" Atem agreed.

"You both are too much!" Uka said, smiling and shaking her head before her husband embraced her with a soft kiss on her lips. "I missed you."

"You too, darling. Though, you know I'm not going to be jealous if you found yourself a new husband. Seriously, there are others in the Underworld with multiple husbands and wives."

_"Not you too!"_

"Atem is almost going to college and you still haven't found a proper husband to take care of you? You know, I want you to be happy. I don't want you to spend all your time alone with nobody but my dead old father and my son giving you trouble, especially since Atem is going to probably leave home in a few years."

"You're impossible! You BOTH are impossible!" Uka said as Atem and his father laughed together.

Hanaski felt jealous. He didn't have any deceased family member he knew. He was happy that everyone else was happy and decided that was all that mattered. Suddenly, a tiny person flew around him that appeared the size of a little baby doll in a Dollhouse. The voice of this small baby echoed as Hanaski stared at it with curiosity.

"Who are you?" Hanaski asked, as the small baby giggled, entering into his shirt and making him laugh. "That tickles!"

_"Baba!"_ The little baby cried.

"A-Are you... my miscarried sibling or something?"

_"Baba!"_

"It is your identical twin brother you never knew or remember. He died from physical mutation. You had survived, while he never made it. I thought it would be fair for you to see him. He still remembers you and has been wanting to see you again," Aknamkanon explained as Hanaski's eyes widened, feeling so many emotions hit him as his little tiny brother peeked from his shirt, then snuggled itself next to Hanaski's neck.

"What's his name?" Hanaski asked.

"Aniki Tomoya."

_"Hi Aniki,"_ Hanaski greeted in a coo voice as Aniki held onto his brother with two glittering eyes.

_"Ana da baba,"_ the baby babbled.

_"I love you too,"_ Hanaski whispered, gently stroking the little baby's cheek that felt so small, soft, and innocent. He couldn't hold back the tears in his eyes, to know that he could've had a twin brother to play with, then he would no longer feel alone.


	38. The Journey of the King

**Wow, now it's really getting emotional. Okay, time to return Yugi to the Underworld. Time for everyone to say goodbye. I'm going to end this with a BANG! I think I already mentioned this before, but NOW is when I actually do make this literal. Review please!**

Everyone took their time talking and sharing their heartfelt moments with their loved ones before saying their goodbyes. It was both sad and happy at the same time, which would seem impossible to ever put those two together. They all wiped their tears, while watching their loved ones return to the Underworld where they belong. Hanaski would never forget the little baby twin that could fit in his hands. He would remember to return home and ask his mother for a picture of Aniki Tomoya inside her womb, if there was one.

Lastly, it was time to say goodbye to Yugi. He joined everyone in a group hug as they all cried heartfelt tears, except for Seto, Uka, and Atem, who was trying to stay strong. Marik and Ishizu even got a hug from Yugi as well.

"So, this is it, _are you really going to leave us?_" Tristan asked with tears in his eyes.

_"Yugi... Akiiki... I know you need to go to the other side in order to... move on, but... once you go, you'll never come back! I don't understand that! We've been through so much and..."_ Tea cried, letting her tears fall into her hands, which were so wet from the last tears she cried. _"It's just not fair!"_

Yugi wanted to cry as well, wanting to hold Tea in his arms and let her know everything was going to be okay, but that would only be a lie. He didn't know how to tell her that they would meet again, because even if they did, would she find another man to love? Even someone like Tea wouldn't accept something like that, or at least not easily. Tea was a girl with love, desire, and memories she cherished in her heart with being with her man.

"Nothing is fair," Joey said as Tea peeked from her hands. "We just need to accept it and burn these memories in our hearts. Akiiki has done more than that for us, he's changed us for the better and we always need to remember that. Don't follow the_ 'forget and move on'_ strategy, that's for cowards that are not willing to take the pain. In order to move on, we need to face that pain and cry bitter tears. I know I learned that the hard way."

"Wise words," Uka said, finally shedding a tear in front of her son for the first time.

"And Yugi..." Joey called out as Yugi rose two eyebrows. "Don't think that just because you're a king changes anything. You'll always be our pale and, if anyone as a problem with that, they can kiss our asses!"

Yugi couldn't help, but chuckle, before replying, _"right."_

"We won't forget you, Yugi. I'll see you in several years and don't think I'm going to follow any rules and guideline shit, you still hold a record for giving me ass for the past year and a half!"

"I love you, brother."

"Same here."

Yugi nodded, then joined with his father as they both entered through the portal and into the Underworld. Very soon, the portal closed and the Eye of Horus lost its glow._ It was finally over._ Atem couldn't get his eyes off of the Eye of Horus on the door to the Underworld, knowing that he would never see Yugi until his time to pass on came. This would be very hard, even for Tea.

Suddenly, the earth began to quake and the walls and ceiling began showing cracks, rubble beginning to fall.

"We have to get out of here!" Marik warned everyone as they all ran from the tomb.

_"Not again!"_ Atem cried out in frustration. "What's going on?"

"The tomb was also built to destroy the millennium items, so that no one may ever use them for evil again!" Ishizu explained while everyone was still running for their lives.

"Nobody explains _anything_ to me anymore."

Everyone ran through the maze inside the tomb to reach the other side. Rocks and rubble were still heard falling in the background. Joey had to lead Uka through the maze, since he was the closest one to her. Marik was slightly farther ahead and was seen making a daredevil jump from one walkway of the maze to the other side, barely reaching the other side of the gap and pulling himself up right on time before being hit by several rocks. Atem was slightly behind Marik, then heard a scream from behind.

Hanaski was only a few feet in behind Atem and witnessed Tea being hit by several rocks before falling into the gap of the maze. He screamed in shock before being dragged and picked up by Atem to be carried off to the other side of the maze and out of the tomb. The rest of the gang barely made it out of the tomb, a good number of them with injuries.

Hanaski burst into tears for Tea's loss in the tomb as everyone stared into shock of what they just witnessed._ Tea had just died._ No more tears could be shed now, except in Hanaski's eyes.

Everyone had returned home and the Ishtars made a search for Tea's body. The search team finally retrieved it, but it was cold and there was no impulse. Tea had been officially declared dead, and then brought back to Japan. It was stated that an earthquake hit Egypt and the tomb began crumbling while Tea and her friends were being guided inside. The Ishtars retrieved everyone else on time, but Tea never made it out. The only thing they could give her was their respects.

Atem used the rest of his week off to not show up for work. The rest of his friends didn't even bother attending school. Hanaski took the news harder than the rest of his friends. Atem did visit him once in a while, but, with both of them being in pain, the visitation never helped much with the situation. Atem now didn't just lose Yugi, but Tea as well._ Perhaps joining with Yugi in the Underworld was for the best in Tea's case._ Atem also had a better excuse for Tea's father to be hanging around with Serenity all of a sudden without growing any suspicion. He could now _assume_ Atem is dating Serenity to make the pain go away or some mumbo jumbo like that.

As for the funeral, it was no surprise that Tea's father was the one in charge of the arrangements. He didn't completely follow the Buddhist tradition of funerals, since he wasn't a true Buddhist. He dressed Tea in a white dress instead of a white kimono, which nobody questioned. Atem helped and appeared at the Wake and funeral. He dressed in his black suit and tie he normally wore for Kaiba Corp.

Both ceremonies were long and sad. Atem held strong before the time of the cremation. He had been in a funeral before, but it was when he was really REALLY young. Tea's deceased name was declared and it was finally time to put out flowers. Atem stood in line with his friends to put out flowers in Tea's casket. He put his bokay of flowers in the casket, which mostly consisted of different colors, since there was not one that could express Atem's feelings at this point.

Atem felt someone hold his hand gently and saw it was Olivia's. Olivia held a sadden face. Atem gently embraced Olivia, letting a few tears finally show, but not to the public's eye. The casket was nailed down before a soft music played inside the casket. When Atem helped Tea's father place certain items in Tea's casket that Tea was fond of, one of them included a small MP3 player with ear buds and one downloaded song, the volume high enough to be heard softly. Atem had pressed play as soon as he put the flowers inside the casket, knowing that there was a five minute pause before the actual song played. The song was so soft that only those close to the casket could hear the song.

When the cremation began, the song eventually could be heard by almost everyone and they knew that song, it played in the movie _All Dogs go to Heaven_ during the end credits:_ Love Survives_. It would take about thirty minutes before the song finally died in the fire. Atem closed his eyes, then heard a voice, _"thank you."_ He looked behind and, for one second, he swore he saw Tea in a dress that the queens wore in Ancient Egypt with Yugi next to her, holding her hand. Yugi had returned to the Underworld where he belonged and took Tea with him. Soon later, Atem knew he'd be joining Yugi as well.

_"It's time to pick the bones,"_ Olivia whispered in Atem's ear as Atem nodded, then got out his chop sticks.

**Yep, that's the end. I'm sorry this had to end on a sad note, but this is my first attempt to creating a sad ending to a story and I'm actually at my dramatic week of the month. I'm surprised I didn't cry while doing these last few chapters, then again, I'm at my most dramatic week of the month and during those times, it doesn't seem dramatic to me lol. I actually did plan on this being a sad ending originally, since Yu-Gi-Oh was supposed to end on a sad not, in a sense. I wanted to do the same, but kinda put my own version of it. I'm not going to bring Yugi back from the dead, he's not coming back in my new sequel. Speaking of which, here is the preview for At-Em-Oh Inherited Memories, based on the game Duelist of the Roses. Most of you probably can't find it, unless you're lucky (I've tried to find it on Game Stop, so believe me when I say it's freakin' hard to find). I did happen to find a Let's Play for Duelist of the Roses played by Scope, which I highly suggest you check out. **

**Atem is about to enter his last year of High School. It has been almost a year, since Yugi crossovered to the Underworld. One day, he suddenly finds himself in England around the end of the 1400's in the middle of the War of the Roses, sent by a mysterious man named Simon, who works for a Henry Tudor, asking for his help. Out of anger, Atem joins with Christian Rosenkreuz on a quest to return home. On the way, he meets surprising faces that relate to his friends back home. To return home, Atem must retrieve eight rose seals from Henry Tudor and his men. If not, Atem will forever be stuck in history, his worst and most hated subject.**


End file.
